Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW is Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s 2nd Largest Position

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 6.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 228,607 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 14,876 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks comprises 5.8% of Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $77,960,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 147.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,761 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after acquiring an additional 4,031 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 169.1% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 5,212 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,275 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 66.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,484 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares during the period. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 11,100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 560 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,398 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $390.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Stephens set a $400.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $410.00 target price (up from $345.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $434.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Forty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $385.67.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $333.26 on Monday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.57 and a 1 year high of $398.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $350.18 and a 200 day moving average of $255.44. The stock has a market cap of $271.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 653.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 0.91.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The business had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 34.5% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director James Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total value of $242,795.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,045,721.30. The trade was a 10.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 38,635 shares of company stock worth $11,150,578 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Palo Alto Networks News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Technical and earnings support: A bullish hammer chart pattern suggests potential near-term support after the recent pullback. Rising earnings estimates and the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter beat—$1.02 in adjusted EPS versus $0.98 expected, with revenue up 34.5% to $3.41 billion—also support the possibility of a rebound. Palo Alto Could Find a Support Soon
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism: DA Davidson raised its price target to $420, while Susquehanna and BTIG lifted targets to $415 and $404, respectively. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an overweight rating, adding to a generally bullish Wall Street view. DA Davidson Raises Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term AI opportunity: Analysts and commentary continue to highlight Palo Alto Networks’ expanding cybersecurity platform and products designed to protect enterprises from AI-related threats. The company’s strong growth profile has helped sustain investor interest despite recent volatility. Palo Alto Networks AI Cybersecurity Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector pressure is limiting momentum: Zscaler’s softer fiscal 2027 growth outlook overshadowed its earnings beat and weighed on cybersecurity peers. Palo Alto Networks has been more resilient than some competitors, but sector-wide concerns remain. Zscaler Growth Guidance Pressures Cybersecurity Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: AI acquisition: Palo Alto Networks reportedly paid about $500 million in cash and stock for Console, an AI help-desk automation startup. The deal could broaden its AI capabilities, although integration and valuation risks may limit its immediate stock impact. Palo Alto Networks Console Acquisition
• Negative Sentiment: Premium valuation and insider sale: PANW’s very high valuation leaves little room for disappointment, while Chief Accounting Officer Josh Paul’s sale of 900 shares worth approximately $336,000 adds a minor cautionary signal. However, the sale reduced his holdings by only 1.23%, limiting its significance.

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.