Stephens Inc. AR Sells 5,067 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Stephens Inc. AR lessened its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 6.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 78,900 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 5,067 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $14,589,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the business’s 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total transaction of $177,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 1.9%

PANW stock opened at $242.83 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $198.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 134.16, a PEG ratio of 8.75 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $245.80. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $174.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.27.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on PANW shares. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Benchmark started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $275.00 target price (up from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.98.

Trending Headlines about Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $275 from $245 and reiterated an Outperform rating, signaling confidence that the stock can keep moving higher. Oppenheimer Hikes Palo Alto Networks Price Target to $275: CyberArk Becomes Idira, Identity Security Just Got Real
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada lifted its target to $255 from $220 and kept an Outperform rating, while Robert W. Baird also boosted its target to $265, reinforcing the bullish analyst tone around PANW. RBC raises price target on Palo Alto Networks to 255 from 220, keeps outperform rating
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies raised its price target to $265 from $215 and highlighted Palo Alto’s identity-security push after CyberArk’s IMPACT26 conference, arguing that AI-driven threats are forcing more enterprise spending on automated security tools. Jefferies Hikes Palo Alto Networks Price Target to 265: AI Is Compressing Attack Timelines
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies and other commentary point to Palo Alto’s new “Idira” platform, which could broaden the company’s identity-security offering and create a new growth engine beyond its core cybersecurity business. Palo Alto advances AI-driven identity strategy with Idira launch, shares gain
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks noted that PANW is drawing unusual investor attention, but the piece was mainly a watchlist-style overview rather than a fresh catalyst. Is Most-Watched Stock Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW) Worth Betting on Now?

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.