Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 2.2% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks shares fell 2.2% to $375.76, with trading volume 42% below its average. Despite the decline, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with 47 of 48 ratings being Buy or Strong Buy.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.85 versus the $0.79 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 31.1% year over year to $3 billion. Palo Alto Networks also issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $3.77–$3.79.
• The stock’s valuation remains elevated, with a market capitalization of $306.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 308, and a PEG ratio of 12.89; insiders sold $27.2 million worth of shares in the last quarter.

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 2.2% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $372.30 and last traded at $375.76. Approximately 5,075,975 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 42% from the average daily volume of 8,756,302 shares. The stock had previously closed at $384.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PANW. Argus set a $425.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Mizuho increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $342.61.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $328.02 and a 200 day moving average of $235.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $306.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 308.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.89 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.00, for a total value of $310,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 79,644 shares in the company, valued at $27,477,180. This trade represents a 1.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total value of $242,795.00. Following the sale, the director owned 5,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,045,721.30. The trade was a 10.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 101,239 shares of company stock valued at $27,174,360 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company's product portfolio includes next‑generation firewalls as a core on‑premises capability, alongside cloud‑delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.

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