Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 2.1% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks' stock price dropped 2.1% to $180.47, with trading volume declining 63% compared to average session volumes.
• Analysts are bullish on the stock, with 28 out of 41 rating it a Buy and setting a consensus price target of $211.52, while recent targets range from $185.00 to $230.00.
• The company reported a quarterly revenue of $2.54 billion, surpassing estimates, and has guided for FY 2026 EPS of 3.750-3.850.

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 2.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $180.35 and last traded at $180.47. 2,368,242 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 6,438,096 shares. The stock had previously closed at $184.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Truist Financial set a $220.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $217.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group set a $185.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price objective on the stock. Twenty-eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.52.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.3%

The firm has a market cap of $121.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 113.51, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $191.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.31.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 17.66%. The business had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. Q1 2026 guidance at 0.880-0.900 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.14, for a total value of $23,567,838.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 264,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,564,964.44. This trade represents a 31.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 526 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $99,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,640,080. This trade represents a 5.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 669,248 shares of company stock worth $126,423,337 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 106.4% in the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 2,378 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 1,226 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,125 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,410,000 after buying an additional 1,374 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter worth approximately $261,000. Diligent Investors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 3,430 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $624,000 after buying an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 137,663 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $23,491,000 after purchasing an additional 10,180 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.

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