Welch & Forbes LLC Purchases 86,897 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Welch & Forbes LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 58.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 234,423 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 86,897 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $43,181,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PANW. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 39.7% during the 3rd quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 176 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. now owns 1,056 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Princeton Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. South Plains Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 4,823 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $982,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Fayez Sarofim & Co lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 4,310 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 62,904 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.65, for a total transaction of $16,270,119.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 235,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,037,002.95. The trade was a 21.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 93,660 shares of company stock worth $21,346,475 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms lifted their price targets on Palo Alto Networks, including Morgan Stanley, Evercore, Wedbush, Benchmark, Wells Fargo, BTIG, and Mizuho, reinforcing expectations for continued growth and keeping sentiment constructive. Morgan Stanley raises price target
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage continues to highlight Palo Alto Networks’ strong platform momentum and growing ARR, suggesting investors see room for further upside if upcoming earnings confirm the trend. ARR growth article
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and media are also debating whether the company’s AI security leadership is a durable competitive advantage or mostly a narrative, which adds uncertainty but does not appear to be the main driver today. AI security narrative article
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Lee Klarich sold 62,904 shares, a move some investors may interpret cautiously, although he still retains a meaningful stake in the company. Insider sale article
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts remain cautious on near-term fundamentals, pointing to rising acquisition costs, share dilution, and a mixed outlook heading into Q3 earnings. Q3 earnings outlook article

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $281.69 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.57 and a 52 week high of $283.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $229.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 155.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $192.58 and a 200-day moving average of $183.96.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PANW. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wedbush upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $275.00 target price (up from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.09.

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.