Palo Alto Networks (PANW) Competitors

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their media sentiment, risk, community ranking, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings and profitability.

Which has preferable earnings & valuation, PANW or CSCO?

Cisco Systems has higher revenue and earnings than Palo Alto Networks. Cisco Systems is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Palo Alto Networks, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Palo Alto Networks	$8.57B	14.44	$2.58B	$1.77	105.61
Cisco Systems	$54.18B	4.24	$10.32B	$2.29	25.21

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of PANW or CSCO?

79.8% of Palo Alto Networks shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of Cisco Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of Palo Alto Networks shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Cisco Systems shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media favor PANW or CSCO?

In the previous week, Palo Alto Networks had 3 more articles in the media than Cisco Systems. MarketBeat recorded 47 mentions for Palo Alto Networks and 44 mentions for Cisco Systems. Palo Alto Networks' average media sentiment score of 1.33 beat Cisco Systems' score of 1.13 indicating that Palo Alto Networks is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Palo Alto Networks	35 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	7 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Cisco Systems	30 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	10 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer PANW or CSCO?

Cisco Systems received 223 more outperform votes than Palo Alto Networks when rated by MarketBeat users. However, 78.54% of users gave Palo Alto Networks an outperform vote while only 73.05% of users gave Cisco Systems an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Palo Alto Networks	Outperform Votes 2222 78.54%	Underperform Votes 607 21.46%
Cisco Systems	Outperform Votes 2445 73.05%	Underperform Votes 902 26.95%

Do analysts prefer PANW or CSCO?

Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus target price of $203.06, suggesting a potential upside of 8.63%. Cisco Systems has a consensus target price of $65.05, suggesting a potential upside of 12.68%. Given Cisco Systems' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Cisco Systems is more favorable than Palo Alto Networks.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Palo Alto Networks	2 Sell rating(s)	12 Hold rating(s)	28 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.68
Cisco Systems	0 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	14 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.78

Is PANW or CSCO more profitable?

Cisco Systems has a net margin of 16.96% compared to Palo Alto Networks' net margin of 14.64%. Cisco Systems' return on equity of 26.08% beat Palo Alto Networks' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Palo Alto Networks	14.64%	21.93%	6.07%
Cisco Systems	16.96%	26.08%	9.65%

Which has more volatility and risk, PANW or CSCO?

Palo Alto Networks has a beta of 1.07, indicating that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cisco Systems has a beta of 0.86, indicating that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Palo Alto Networks and Cisco Systems tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.