Palo Alto Networks (PANW) Competitors

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

Do insiders & institutionals believe in CSCO or PANW?

73.3% of Cisco Systems shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.8% of Palo Alto Networks shares are held by institutional investors. 0.0% of Cisco Systems shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.5% of Palo Alto Networks shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer CSCO or PANW?

Cisco Systems received 228 more outperform votes than Palo Alto Networks when rated by MarketBeat users. However, 78.48% of users gave Palo Alto Networks an outperform vote while only 73.05% of users gave Cisco Systems an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Cisco Systems	Outperform Votes 2453 73.05%	Underperform Votes 905 26.95%
Palo Alto Networks	Outperform Votes 2225 78.48%	Underperform Votes 610 21.52%

Which has better earnings and valuation, CSCO or PANW?

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
Cisco Systems	$55.62B	4.54	$10.32B	$2.45	25.89
Palo Alto Networks	$8.57B	15.02	$2.58B	$1.77	109.88

Which has more risk and volatility, CSCO or PANW?

Cisco Systems has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Palo Alto Networks has a beta of 1.02, suggesting that its share price is 2% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is CSCO or PANW 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
Cisco Systems	16.96%	26.08%	9.65%
Palo Alto Networks	14.64%	21.93%	6.07%

Does the media refer more to CSCO or PANW?

In the previous week, Cisco Systems had 40 more articles in the media than Palo Alto Networks. MarketBeat recorded 118 mentions for Cisco Systems and 78 mentions for Palo Alto Networks. Palo Alto Networks' average media sentiment score of 1.26 beat Cisco Systems' score of 1.04 indicating that Palo Alto Networks is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Cisco Systems	72 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	26 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Palo Alto Networks	49 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	13 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts prefer CSCO or PANW?

Cisco Systems presently has a consensus target price of $68.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.22%. Palo Alto Networks has a consensus target price of $203.46, indicating a potential upside of 4.62%. Given Cisco Systems' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Cisco Systems is more favorable than Palo Alto Networks.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cisco Systems	0 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	13 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.77
Palo Alto Networks	2 Sell rating(s)	14 Hold rating(s)	28 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.62

Summary

Cisco Systems beats Palo Alto Networks on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.