Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Up 2.3% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks' stock price rose 2.3% to $213.28, despite a decrease in trading volume compared to its average.
• Analysts maintain a positive outlook for the stock, with 29 "Buy" ratings and an average price target of $216.00, indicating potential for further growth.
• Insider trading activity showed executives selling a significant number of shares, with total sales in the last quarter exceeding $260 million, which could signal caution among insiders.

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 2.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $214.72 and last traded at $213.28. Approximately 4,308,497 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average daily volume of 6,333,417 shares. The stock had previously closed at $208.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PANW. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $223.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $215.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $235.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, UBS Group set a $245.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Twenty-nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $216.00.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $189.28. The stock has a market cap of $142.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 132.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.98.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.66% and a net margin of 12.30%.The company had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. The business's revenue 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, analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.19, for a total value of $1,020,950.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 96,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,629,805.65. This represents a 4.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.92, for a total value of $25,594,426.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 149,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,616,344.80. This trade represents a 44.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,315,130 shares of company stock worth $260,687,367 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 6,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. 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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