Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 9.6% – What’s Next?

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price traded down 9.6% on Thursday. The company traded as low as $312.12 and last traded at $314.67. Approximately 13,249,503 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 65% from the average daily volume of 8,053,582 shares. The stock had previously closed at $348.04.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PANW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $404.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings raised Palo Alto Networks from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $525.00 price target (up from $475.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $420.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Thirty-nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $398.55.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $256.96 billion, a PE ratio of 615.38, a PEG ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $370.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $273.58.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 8.50%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. 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. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh Paul sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $395.70, for a total value of $158,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 77,987 shares in the company, valued at $30,859,455.90. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 27,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.60, for a total value of $10,769,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 117,750 shares in the company, valued at $46,110,900. This trade represents a 18.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 54,210 shares of company stock valued at $20,823,029. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Principia Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc is a cybersecurity company that provides products and services to help organizations protect their networks, cloud environments, devices and applications. Its offerings include next-generation firewalls, cloud security tools, secure access services and platforms for detecting and responding to cyber threats.

The company’s product portfolio includes Prisma for cloud and network security and Cortex for security operations, including threat detection and response. It also provides cybersecurity consulting and incident-response services through Unit 42.

Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Palo Alto Networks serves businesses, government agencies and other organizations around the world.