Cercano Management LLC Sells 77,938 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Cercano Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 44.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 96,090 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 77,938 shares during the quarter. Cercano Management LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $19,566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. King Wealth Management Group grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 181.7% in the 3rd quarter. King Wealth Management Group now owns 3,116 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $634,000 after purchasing an additional 2,010 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 63.3% in the 3rd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,925 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $799,000 after buying an additional 1,522 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.6% during the third quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 347,807 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $70,821,000 after buying an additional 8,737 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 87.2% during the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,794 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $2,809,000 after buying an additional 6,424 shares during the period. Finally, Maridea Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth about $778,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $163.50 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.15 and a 52-week high of $223.61. The business’s fifty day moving average is $181.06 and its 200 day moving average is $192.21. The firm has a market cap of $113.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.48, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 11.69% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.650-3.700 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.800 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $220.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities cut their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Thirty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $222.89.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beats and solid growth — PANW posted $1.03 EPS and roughly $2.6B revenue (≈15% YoY), topping estimates and showing Next‑Generation Security ARR up ~33%, evidence of durable demand. Palo Alto Networks Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue outlook upgraded — management raised full‑year revenue guidance to about $11.28B–$11.31B, a meaningful lift vs. prior range, signaling top‑line confidence. Palo Alto Networks Lifts Revenue Outlook as Second-Quarter Profit Jumps
• Neutral Sentiment: Product and research initiatives aim to monetize AI security demand — launches like MSIAM 2.0 and a Unit 42 report highlight strategic focus on AI‑era threats, supportive longer‑term catalysts but not immediate earnings relief. Palo Alto Networks Introduces MSIAM 2.0
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity mixed — some price‑target trims (e.g., Mizuho) but buy/positive ratings remain; watch revisions for guidance sensitivity. Price Target Lowered by Mizuho
• Negative Sentiment: Profit and cost concerns weighed on shares — management flagged rising costs tied to recent deals and cut/trimmed annual profit expectations, which the market interpreted as margin pressure from acquisitions. Palo Alto Networks cuts annual profit forecast as deal costs bite, shares fall
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term profit/guidance reaction — despite raising FY revenue, the company’s quarterly profit guidance and messaging around margins disappointed some investors, contributing to after‑hours/early selling. Palo Alto Networks slumps 6% as third quarter profit guidance falls short
• Negative Sentiment: Acquisition (Koi) raised execution and cost concerns — the announced Koi deal aims to expand AI endpoint capabilities but added short‑term integration/cost uncertainty that pressured sentiment. Palo Alto Networks Announces Intent to Acquire Koi

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total transaction of $940,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 155,119 shares in the company, valued at $29,190,293.42. This trade represents a 3.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 12,500 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total transaction of $2,441,625.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 75,184 shares in the company, valued at $14,685,690.72. This trade represents a 14.26% 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 valued at $49,910,995 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.