Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Purchases 19,707 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. increased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 38.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 70,994 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 19,707 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $14,456,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth $31,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 39.7% during the third quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 176 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter valued at about $41,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Palo Alto Networks News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Big drop in short interest — Short interest fell roughly 50.8% in February to ~22.8M shares (2.8% of float) and a short-interest ratio of ~1.3 days, reducing immediate short-squeeze risk and removing a pressure point on the shares. (no link)
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst consensus still generally constructive — PANW has received an average analyst rating around “Moderate Buy,” supporting a baseline of continued institutional interest. Palo Alto Networks Receives Average Rating of Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Media pieces pitching the AI/security upside — Commentary argues PANW’s AI-security investments could drive a turnaround, but these are thematic narratives rather than new fundamental beats. PANW Is Down 19% But Its AI Security Bet May Change That
• Neutral Sentiment: Competitive context vs. CrowdStrike — Coverage compares Palo Alto’s platform strategy to CrowdStrike’s M&A growth path; useful for positioning but not an immediate catalyst. Cybersecurity Showdown: CrowdStrike vs Palo Alto
• Neutral Sentiment: High-profile commentary — Jim Cramer discussed PANW on air, increasing retail visibility but not adding new company-guidance information. Jim Cramer Discusses Palo Alto Networks’ Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Daiwa cuts price target but keeps outperform rating — PT lowered from $212 to $175, signaling reduced near-term upside expectations from that shop while still endorsing the name. Daiwa Securities Adjusts PT on Palo Alto Networks to $175
• Negative Sentiment: Q3/organic growth commentary; EPS dilution concern — Analysis notes organic growth normalizing and that a Q3 EPS miss was driven by share dilution, which could pressure near-term EPS multiples if buybacks don’t offset dilution. Palo Alto Networks: Organic Growth Begins To Normalize

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 46,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,502,184.05. This trade represents a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total transaction of $940,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 155,119 shares in the company, valued at $29,190,293.42. This represents a 3.12% 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 company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho set a $200.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $265.00 price target (up from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, January 5th. DA Davidson set a $190.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Northland Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Westpark Capital reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.62.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $144.84 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $176.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $191.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.19 billion, a PE ratio of 80.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 0.75. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $223.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. 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. Analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.