Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fifty ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirty-nine have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $387.5957.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PANW shares. Berenberg Bank increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Scotiabank cut Palo Alto Networks from a “sector outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, August 31st. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.00, for a total value of $310,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 79,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,477,180. The trade was a 1.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John Key sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $376.03, for a total transaction of $940,075.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,760,300. The trade was a 20.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 13,667 shares of company stock worth $4,560,718 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 90.1% during the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 325 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $382,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $55,000. Marathon Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.4% in the second quarter. Marathon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,115 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $4,472,000 after purchasing an additional 554 shares during the period. Finally, Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% in the second quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. now owns 2,664 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $908,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $375.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $307.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 736.58, a PEG ratio of 10.82 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $351.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.73. Palo Alto Networks has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $398.88.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business 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. As a group, research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Palo Alto Networks News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI adoption is increasing demand for cybersecurity platforms as companies seek protection against automated attacks, evolving malware and other AI-related risks. J.P. Morgan identified Palo Alto Networks among the cybersecurity companies positioned to benefit from this trend. AI Is Boosting Cybersecurity. CrowdStrike and 4 More Stocks to Buy.
• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank raised its fiscal 2027 EPS estimate for PANW to $2.30 from $2.11, matching the current consensus forecast. The upgrade to earnings expectations supports the case for improving fundamentals, although the bank retained a “Hold” rating. Scotiabank earnings estimate report
• Neutral Sentiment: Cybersecurity stocks have attracted investor interest as security spending remains more resilient than broader enterprise software spending. However, much of the sector’s AI-driven growth outlook may already be reflected in valuations, making continued execution important for PANW.
• Negative Sentiment: Directors disclosed several stock sales: Aparna Bawa sold 1,500 shares across September 14–15 for approximately $562,200, while John P. Key sold 2,500 shares for about $940,075. The transactions reduced their respective holdings by roughly 9% to 20%, potentially creating a modest sentiment overhang. Palo Alto Networks insider filings
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary highlights a trade-off for PANW: sales are accelerating as agentic AI expands security needs, but margins are contracting. With the stock trading at a very high earnings multiple, weaker profitability or slower growth could increase valuation risk. The Proliferation of Agentic AI Has Been Great News for Palo Alto Stock Investors

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.