Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Stock: Phoenix Financial Ltd. Increases Holdings

Phoenix Financial Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 880,090 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 129,360 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for 2.3% of Phoenix Financial Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Phoenix Financial Ltd.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $349,546,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Solstein Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $26,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 81 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

Investors following PANW have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc upgraded PANW to Overweight from Sector Weight and set a $380 price target. The firm expects next-generation security growth, stronger security spending, and demand for AI protection to outweigh concerns about the traditional firewall business. The upgrade helped lift shares in premarket trading. Palo Alto Networks stock rises as KeyBanc upgrades shares to Overweight
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies lowered its price target from $450 to $400 but maintained a Buy rating, leaving the analyst positive while signaling a more cautious valuation view. Jefferies analyst recommendations
• Negative Sentiment: A Zacks comparison favored Cloudflare over Palo Alto, citing Cloudflare’s stronger revenue-growth outlook and rising AI-security demand. This could weigh on PANW relative to peers, though it is one analyst’s comparison rather than a change to PANW’s outlook. PANW vs. NET: Which Cybersecurity Stock Should You Buy Right Now?

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 0.1%

Palo Alto Networks stock traded down $0.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $322.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,278,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,260,294. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $432.33. The company has a market cap of $263.84 billion, a PE ratio of 631.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.25 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $367.50 and its 200 day moving average is $277.20.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 2.67%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2027 guidance at 4.160-4.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $395.70, for a total value of $158,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 77,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,859,455.90. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 27,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.60, for a total transaction of $10,769,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 117,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,110,900. This represents a 18.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 54,210 shares of company stock valued at $20,823,029 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PANW shares. Mizuho set a $415.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $320.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 price target (up from $370.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $434.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Forty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.12.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is a cybersecurity company that provides products and services to help organizations protect their networks, cloud environments, devices and applications. Its offerings include next-generation firewalls, cloud security tools, secure access services and platforms for detecting and responding to cyber threats. The company’s product portfolio includes Prisma for cloud and network security and Cortex for security operations, including threat detection and response. It also provides cybersecurity consulting and incident-response services through Unit 42.