Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Updates Q3 2026 Earnings Guidance

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) issued an update on its third quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 0.780-0.800 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.450. The company issued revenue guidance of $2.9 billion-$2.9 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $2.6 billion. Palo Alto Networks also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 3.650-3.700 EPS.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

PANW opened at $148.34 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $144.15 and a one year high of $223.61. The company has a market cap of $103.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 94.59, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $181.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $192.21.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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. As a group, analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PANW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $220.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $223.00 price target (down previously from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Westpark Capital restated a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Thirty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.02.

Insider Activity

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director James J. Goetz sold 12,500 shares of the business’s 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 owned 75,184 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,685,690.72. The trade was a 14.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.91, for a total value of $23,177,738.34. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 327,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,878,351.95. This represents a 26.93% 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 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results beat consensus: Palo Alto reported $1.03 EPS and ~$2.59B revenue (both above estimates); Next‑Generation Security ARR grew ~33% YoY — evidence of solid demand and platform traction. PR Newswire — Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management lifted full‑year revenue range to about $11.28–11.31B and provided FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $3.65–3.70 (above Street consensus), signaling longer‑term top‑line momentum. WSJ — Revenue Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Several sell‑side firms reiterated Buy/Outperform ratings with high price targets (e.g., Wedbush and Rosenblatt at $225; BTIG at $200), which supports a bullish medium‑term narrative among analysts. Benzinga — Analyst Notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Some brokerages trimmed price targets (Mizuho, BMO, Needham lowered targets from ~$230 to ~$200–205) but mostly kept Buy/Outperform ratings — mixed signal: lower valuations but continued analyst conviction. The Fly — Price Target Changes
• Negative Sentiment: Management flagged higher integration and deal costs tied to recent acquisitions (including the large CyberArk deal), and trimmed annual profit expectations — this comment triggered an immediate sell‑off in after‑hours/premarket trading. Reuters — Deal Costs / Profit Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Shorter‑term guidance concerns: some headlines noted Q3 profit guidance disappointed expectations, prompting further downside pressure despite the quarter’s beats. CNBC — Q3 Guidance Reaction

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 66.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,484 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 169.1% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 5,212 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $948,000 after buying an additional 3,275 shares during the period. Redwood Financial Network Corp acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $203,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at about $176,000. Finally, Redwood Park Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 53.2% in the fourth quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC now owns 763 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

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.