National Pension Service Acquires 28,936 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

National Pension Service lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,754,036 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,936 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $323,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Steph & Co. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on PANW. Argus upgraded Palo Alto Networks to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Capital One Financial upped their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $168.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Berenberg Bank set a $290.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.28.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 52,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,631,525. This represents a 30.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 93,660 shares of company stock worth $21,346,475 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

More Palo Alto Networks News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple Wall Street firms raised their price targets on PANW this week, including Benchmark to $270, Wedbush to $300, and Wells Fargo reaffirming a Buy with a $285 target, reinforcing optimism around the company’s long-term growth story. Benchmark price target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain upbeat on Palo Alto Networks’ platform expansion and cybersecurity demand, with coverage framing the company as a potential beneficiary of AI-driven security needs. AI security supercycle article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports ahead of Q3 earnings highlight strong platform growth, but investors are waiting for confirmation in the company’s results and guidance before making a bigger move. Q3 earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Market chatter around the upcoming earnings release and key operating metrics is keeping PANW in focus, but this is more of a wait-and-see catalyst than a fresh driver. Wall Street estimates preview
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors are cautious because acquisition costs are rising and share dilution could pressure near-term earnings quality. Acquisition costs and dilution concern
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment across cybersecurity stocks has also been pressured by weak peer guidance, and an insider sale by EVP Lee Klarich added a modest overhang. Insider sale

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

PANW stock opened at $257.77 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $190.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $183.27. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $261.41. The company has a market cap of $210.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 142.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.96 and a beta of 0.77.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.