Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Purchased by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 65,269,963 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,253,589 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 9.76% of Palo Alto Networks worth $13,290,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 0.8% in the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 21,289 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $4,335,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Amica Retiree Medical Trust acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $162,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,435,149 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $292,225,000 after buying an additional 56,993 shares during the period. Atticus Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.1% in the third quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,221 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amica Mutual Insurance Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth $1,822,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,768 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.03, for a total transaction of $23,070,311.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 298,887 shares in the company, valued at $57,096,383.61. This trade represents a 28.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.81, for a total transaction of $147,848.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 46,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,502,184.05. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 260,542 shares of company stock worth $49,910,995 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PANW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $265.00 target price (up previously from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays set a $200.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Thirty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.97.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $166.95 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $182.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $192.32. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $144.15 and a one year high of $223.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 105.66, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 11.69% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.56 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Long-term bull case highlighted — several analyst/commentary pieces argue PANW remains a structural growth name in cybersecurity and a smart buy for long-term investors. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Company growth deals and product momentum are cited as offsets to recent analyst cuts, reinforcing the view that near-term analyst noise may not derail multi-year growth. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Q2 preview: Zacks notes PANW is entering Q2 with mid‑teen revenue growth expectations but flags decelerating ARR momentum and a premium valuation — a key focus for the upcoming print. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary: PANW recently dropped more than the broader market in intraday moves, reflecting short-term volatility ahead of earnings. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price-target cuts: JPMorgan lowered its PANW target to $225, and other firms (Rosenblatt, BTIG) trimmed targets (Rosenblatt to $225; BTIG to $200), which reduces near-term upside expectations despite some firms maintaining “buy” ratings. Read More. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Deal and listing risk: reports say PANW plans a dual listing on the Tel‑Aviv Stock Exchange after closing the ~$25B CyberArk acquisition — there’s short‑term investor concern about integration complexity and political/geographic exposure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical/reputational risk: Reuters reports PANW opted not to publicly tie China to a recent global hacking campaign it exposed, citing fears of retaliation — this raises potential client, regulatory and reputation considerations. Read More.

Palo Alto Networks 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.