Josh Paul Sells 900 Shares of Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) CAO Josh Paul sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.68, for a total value of $336,312.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 72,484 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,085,821.12. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $3.46 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $331.94. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,809,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,592,565. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.57 and a 12 month high of $398.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market capitalization of $270.53 billion, a PE ratio of 650.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $348.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $253.11.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share 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 10.21%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $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. Analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on PANW. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $335.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $420.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $434.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $390.00 target price (up from $300.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Forty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.67.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Palo Alto Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong fiscal fourth-quarter results: Revenue rose 34.5% year over year to $3.41 billion, exceeding the $3.35 billion consensus estimate, while adjusted earnings of $1.02 per share topped expectations of $0.98. Next-generation security annual recurring revenue increased 63% to $9.1 billion, including nearly $1 billion in net new ARR. Palo Alto Networks beats quarterly earnings estimates, acquires AI platform Console
• Positive Sentiment: Above-consensus outlook: Management projected fiscal 2027 revenue of $14.1 billion to $14.2 billion, representing approximately 23% to 24% growth, and provided first-quarter guidance above Wall Street expectations. The company said AI-driven cyber threats are accelerating demand for platform-based security products. Palo Alto Projects Double-Digit Growth as AI Drives Cybersecurity Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains strong: RBC, DA Davidson, Susquehanna, Rosenblatt, BTIG, Citigroup and Argus raised or reaffirmed bullish ratings, with price targets ranging from $404 to $475. Jim Cramer also described PANW favorably following the report.
• Neutral Sentiment: AI expansion through acquisition: Palo Alto Networks acquired Console, an AI-native platform for automating IT help-desk workflows. The deal could strengthen its agentic-security capabilities, although reports indicate the company paid approximately $500 million in cash and stock. Palo Alto Networks paid $500M for Thrive-backed Console
• Negative Sentiment: Expectations and valuation pressured the shares: Despite the earnings beat, investors viewed the results as insufficient for a stock trading at a very elevated earnings multiple. The post-report decline reflected profit-taking and a repricing of PANW’s premium valuation, while cybersecurity peers also weakened. Why Palo Alto Networks Stock Is Nosediving

Palo Alto Networks Company 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.