IFP Advisors Inc Has $12.01 Million Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 131.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,187 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 37,073 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $12,007,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in 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 during the period. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $240.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $195.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 132.67, a P/E/G ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $178.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.34. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $248.85.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Palo Alto Networks News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $275 and kept a Buy rating, signaling confidence in continued upside for Palo Alto Networks. Truist raises PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer lifted its target to $275 and reiterated an Outperform rating after noting encouraging signs from the company’s CyberArk-related product launch and customer feedback. Oppenheimer lifts PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho increased its target to $265 and maintained an Outperform rating, citing strength in subscriptions and possible upside to remaining performance obligations. Mizuho raises PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt also raised its target to $275 and kept a Buy rating, adding to the broad analyst optimism around the stock. Rosenblatt positive forecast
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Nikesh Arora said AI is expected to help engineers ship more features, not reduce headcount, suggesting the company sees AI as a growth driver rather than a cost-cutting story. Business Insider article
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider buying was highlighted as value-positive, but the item is more of a confidence signal than a clear near-term catalyst. Insider buying article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary noted the stock has rallied sharply and is technically overbought, which could make it vulnerable to volatility if upcoming earnings disappoint. Technical analysis article

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director owned 52,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $223.00 target price (down from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $220.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Benchmark began coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.49.

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.