Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading 3.2% Higher - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks shares rose 3.2% to $217.79 with a significant trading volume decline of 22% compared to the average.
• Research analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $214.95 based on 28 Buy ratings and 12 Hold ratings.
• The company reported a 15.8% year-over-year revenue increase of $2.54 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, and achieved an EPS of $0.95 for the latest quarter.

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) shares traded up 3.2% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $217.94 and last traded at $217.79. 4,977,544 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 6,352,726 shares. The stock had previously closed at $211.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Palo Alto Networks from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $207.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Twenty-eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $214.95.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.2%

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $190.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $188.60. The stock has a market cap of $145.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 135.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 0.98.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 17.66%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. 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 anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the company's 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,616,344.80. This represents a 44.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.19, for a total transaction of $1,020,950.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 96,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,629,805.65. The trade was a 4.94% 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 ninety days. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.