Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading 1% Higher – Still a Buy?

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price shot up 1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $344.79 and last traded at $338.49. Approximately 4,372,096 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 49% from the average session volume of 8,512,385 shares. The stock had previously closed at $335.10.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Nikesh Arora said artificial intelligence is creating an estimated $1 trillion cybersecurity modernization opportunity, because legacy systems are not designed to defend against machine-speed attacks. The comments support the long-term demand outlook for Palo Alto Networks’ security platform. Palo Alto CEO discusses the AI security gap
• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush initiated coverage with an “outperform” rating and a $400 price target, implying approximately 21% upside from the referenced trading level. The call reflects confidence in PANW’s platform expansion and cybersecurity growth prospects.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results showed revenue of $3.41 billion, up 34% year over year, while Next-Generation Security annual recurring revenue climbed 63% to $9.10 billion. Remaining performance obligations also increased 34% to $21.2 billion, indicating substantial contracted demand. Palo Alto Networks reports NGS ARR growth
• Neutral Sentiment: The Goldman Sachs Communacopia presentation provided additional management commentary, but no new material financial guidance or catalyst was identified in the supplied information. Palo Alto Networks conference transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that the quarter included a $282 million GAAP net loss, with acquisition costs potentially limiting near-term earnings conversion despite strong ARR growth. The stock also trades at a very elevated earnings multiple, increasing sensitivity to execution and profitability concerns. Why Palo Alto Networks shares are trading lower

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $410.00 price objective (up from $345.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $415.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $394.00 price target (up from $387.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating and set a $300.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Thirty-nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $387.60.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 2.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $269.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 648.35, a PEG ratio of 9.83 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $349.25 and a 200-day moving average of $261.06.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm 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 8.50%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. 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. Research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 632 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.67, for a total value of $201,399.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,143,693.09. The trade was a 8.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total transaction of $242,795.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,898 shares in the company, 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 sold a total of 9,667 shares of company stock valued at $3,058,443 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PANW. Trilogy Capital Inc. increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.8% during the second quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 2,127 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $725,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Wisconsin Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% during the second quarter. Wisconsin Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,206 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,093,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% during the second quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,197 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 125.0% during the 2nd quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 81 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, WNY Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC now owns 1,751 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $597,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc is a cybersecurity company that provides security products and services to businesses, governments and other organizations worldwide. The company helps customers protect networks, cloud environments, endpoints, applications and connected devices from cyber threats.

Its portfolio includes next-generation firewalls and network security technologies, as well as cloud-delivered security solutions such as Prisma Access and Prisma Cloud. Palo Alto Networks also offers Cortex products for endpoint protection, security operations, threat detection and response, and automation.