Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 1.8% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks shares fell 1.8% to $394.49 in midday trading, with volume down 46% from the average session.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $398.55 price target, while recent targets range from $300 to $430.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.02 EPS versus $0.98 expected and $3.41 billion in revenue, up 34.5% year over year. Insiders sold more than 54,000 shares worth approximately $20.8 million over the past 90 days.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) dropped 1.8% on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $393.49 and last traded at $394.49. 4,383,367 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 8,067,378 shares. The stock had previously closed at $401.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on PANW shares. Stephens set a $400.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Roth Capital restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $300.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $430.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $390.00 target price (up from $300.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $415.00 target price (up from $335.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Thirty-nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $398.55.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.8%

The business has a fifty day moving average of $371.00 and a 200 day moving average of $267.03. The firm has a market cap of $322.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 773.52, a P/E/G ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The firm's revenue was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2027 guidance at 4.160-4.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.68, for a total transaction of $336,312.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 72,484 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,085,821.12. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.61, for a total value of $373,610.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,031,317.57. This trade represents a 15.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,210 shares of company stock worth $20,823,029. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. B&D White Capital Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at $353,000. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth $2,159,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.6% in the third quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 240,029 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $95,366,000 after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 126.6% during the third quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 18,600 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $7,390,000 after buying an additional 10,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 507,550 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $81,370,000 after buying an additional 94,117 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc NASDAQ: PANW is a global cybersecurity company that helps organizations protect networks, cloud environments, endpoints, and digital infrastructure. Its offerings are designed to prevent cyberattacks, identify security risks, monitor activity, and support incident response across enterprise, government, and service-provider environments.

The company's portfolio includes network security products such as next-generation firewalls and security operations tools; Prisma, its cloud security platform; and Cortex, a suite focused on endpoint protection, threat detection, security analytics, and automated response.

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