OneAscent Financial Services LLC Buys Shares of 8,031 Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

OneAscent Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 8,031 shares of the network technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,739,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC increased its position in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW stock opened at $349.56 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $335.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $240.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market cap of $284.89 billion, a PE ratio of 286.52, a P/E/G ratio of 12.08 and a beta of 0.91. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.57 and a 1 year high of $398.88.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total value of $242,795.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,045,721.30. This represents a 10.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.74, for a total transaction of $101,134.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,244,839.38. This trade represents a 4.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 37,935 shares of company stock worth $10,809,461 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on PANW shares. Mizuho set a $415.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $434.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $370.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $180.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.67.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI security initiative expands growth opportunities. Palo Alto Networks launched the Frontier AI Critical Defense Program with technology partners to protect critical infrastructure from AI-driven exploits and vulnerabilities. The initiative could strengthen PANW’s position in the emerging AI-security market and support demand from government and enterprise customers. Palo Alto Networks Introduces Frontier AI Critical Defense Program
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst remains bullish. Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target to $425 from $340 and maintained an “overweight” rating, citing potential for continued appreciation. The higher target signals confidence in PANW’s growth prospects despite recent volatility. Palo Alto Networks Price Target Raised by Cantor Fitzgerald
• Positive Sentiment: Enterprise AI adoption may drive sales. Palo Alto Networks is positioning its network, identity, AI and security-operations products to benefit as businesses deploy more artificial intelligence. This could help PANW compete more effectively with CrowdStrike and Zscaler. Can Strong Enterprise AI Adoption Help PANW Challenge CrowdStrike and Zscaler?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage from TD Cowen and other outlets remains constructive on PANW’s long-term appreciation potential, but provides limited new operating information. TD Cowen Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Palo Alto Networks
• Negative Sentiment: Cybersecurity-sector selling is weighing on PANW. Palo Alto Networks declined even as the broader market improved, while CrowdStrike also sold off sharply. The synchronized weakness suggests investors are reducing exposure to cybersecurity stocks or taking profits, overshadowing bullish analyst commentary. CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks Stock Declines

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.