Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Up 2.5% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks shares rose 2.5% to $334.47, while trading volume was 40% below its average.
• Analysts have a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $398.55; 39 analysts rate the stock Buy and 11 rate it Hold.
• The company beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $1.02 versus $0.98 expected and revenue of $3.41 billion, up 34.5% year over year.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) were up 2.5% during trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $341.80 and last traded at $334.47. 4,781,409 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 8,017,223 shares. The stock had previously closed at $326.36.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Mizuho set a $415.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. New Street Research set a $415.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Deutsche Bank reissued a "buy" rating and set a $430.00 price target (up from $350.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $440.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Thirty-nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $398.55.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.5%

The firm has a market cap of $273.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 655.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.49 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $368.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $275.05. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The company had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. 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. As a group, research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.28, for a total transaction of $103,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,825,163.56. This represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.68, for a total transaction of $7,533,600.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 54,210 shares of company stock worth $20,823,029 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $26,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 125.0% in the second quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 81 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is a cybersecurity company that provides products and services to help organizations protect their networks, cloud environments, devices and applications. Its offerings include next-generation firewalls, cloud security tools, secure access services and platforms for detecting and responding to cyber threats. The company's product portfolio includes Prisma for cloud and network security and Cortex for security operations, including threat detection and response. It also provides cybersecurity consulting and incident-response services through Unit 42.

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