Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Stock Holdings Decreased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp lessened its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 5.3% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,028,476 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 57,155 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $350,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,598,000. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.77, for a total transaction of $318,393.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 73,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,950,444.58. This represents a 1.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 38,835 shares of company stock valued at $11,127,854 over the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 2.9%

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $371.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $344.62 and a 200-day moving average of $248.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.85 billion, a PE ratio of 304.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.91. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.57 and a 52 week high of $398.88.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.37 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. Analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.01 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PANW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Arete Research boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $433.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Mizuho set a $415.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price (up from $180.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.42.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark raised its price target to $400 from $340 and maintained a Buy rating, citing potential upside to next-generation security annual recurring revenue, revenue, operating income and margins. The forecast reinforces expectations that Palo Alto Networks’ AI-security strategy is gaining traction. Palo Alto Networks Gets a $400 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are taking confidence from CrowdStrike’s stronger-than-expected results, which highlighted robust AI-related cybersecurity demand and lifted sentiment across the sector. Palo Alto Networks is viewed as a potential beneficiary of the same spending cycle. Palo Alto Networks Stock Trades Up
• Positive Sentiment: Platformization, adoption of AI-security products and recent deal wins are expected to support fourth-quarter growth. BTIG also assigned PANW a Buy rating, adding to broadly favorable analyst coverage. Palo Alto Networks to Report Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings are the next major catalyst. Traders expect potentially significant movement after the report, while analysts are watching recurring revenue, margins, operating income and guidance—not just revenue and EPS. Expected Post-Earnings Stock Move
• Negative Sentiment: Acquisition-related costs could pressure results, and the stock’s triple-digit P/E ratio—above 300 based on the supplied data—means much of the AI-growth outlook may already be reflected in the price. Any shortfall in growth or guidance could trigger profit-taking. Palo Alto’s Rally Has One Big Problem Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Accounting Officer Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares for approximately $318,000, reducing his position by 1.21%. The transaction is small relative to his remaining holdings but may create a modest sentiment headwind. Palo Alto Networks Insider Sale

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.