Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. Boosts Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 53,592 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,662 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for 1.7% of Laffer Tengler Investments Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Laffer Tengler Investments Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $10,912,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. MTM Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 39.7% in the 3rd quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 176 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $156.09 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $223.61. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $173.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $190.58. The stock has a market cap of $127.37 billion, a PE ratio of 86.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 0.78.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.650-3.700 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.800 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $245.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $210.19.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.81, for a total value of $147,848.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 46,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,502,184.05. This represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total value of $940,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 155,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,190,293.42. This trade represents a 3.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 139,068 shares of company stock valued at $26,600,684. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Profile

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company’s product portfolio includes next?generation firewalls as a core on?premises capability, alongside cloud?delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.