Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.05 EPS

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The network technology company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.05, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 7.95%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.37 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks updated its FY 2026 guidance to 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance to 0.960-0.980 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Palo Alto Networks’ conference call:

• Record Q3 results exceeded every guided metric, with NGS ARR reaching $8.13 billion and organic NGS ARR growing 28% year over year after adjusting for recent acquisitions.
• Network security posted its strongest quarter in years, driven by nearly 40% year-over-year growth in next-generation firewall bookings and early AI data center demand.
• SASE and Prisma AIRS were major growth drivers, with SASE ARR up 40% to $1.6 billion and Prisma AIRS scaling to over 300 customers as AI security demand accelerated.
• XSIAM and observability continued to scale, with Cortex XSIAM surpassing $600 million in ARR and Chronosphere topping $300 million in ARR, both benefiting from rising telemetry and AI-driven demand.
• CyberArk integration appears to be ahead of plan, with management saying profitability synergies are running 3-6 months ahead of schedule and that roughly 1,000 cross-org go-to-market engagements are already underway.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 5.6%

PANW stock opened at $280.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.83 billion, a PE ratio of 229.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 0.94. Palo Alto Networks has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $302.95. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $200.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.46.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price target (up from $265.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Capital One Financial boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $168.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $209.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $315.00 price target (up from $220.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $304.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,103,105. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 94,760 shares of company stock worth $21,660,063. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Ankerstar Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Palo Alto Networks reported fiscal Q3 results that topped expectations, with EPS of $0.85 versus $0.80-$0.81 expected and revenue of $3.0 billion versus $2.94 billion estimated, while sales rose 31.1% year over year.
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised full-year FY2026 guidance and Q4 guidance above Wall Street forecasts, signaling continued demand momentum and stronger profitability ahead.
• Positive Sentiment: Management said AI-related security demand is accelerating, and CEO Nikesh Arora cited a surge in customer meeting requests as enterprises prepare for AI-driven risks.
• Positive Sentiment: A wave of analyst price-target hikes followed the report, with firms including Citigroup, Wedbush, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, Berenberg, Rosenblatt, RBC, Oppenheimer, Stifel, Mizuho, Stephens, and others lifting targets well above the current share price, reinforcing bullish sentiment.
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage coverage remains supportive overall, with multiple reports describing the stock as a moderate buy and highlighting the company’s AI-security growth story.
• Neutral Sentiment: One insider filing showed CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares, but the sale was relatively small compared with his remaining holdings and is unlikely to change the long-term thesis.
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the strong quarter and upbeat analyst reaction, the stock has paused after a big rally, suggesting investors may be taking profits and focusing on valuation after the recent surge.

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.