Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 3.7% – Should You Sell?

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s stock price dropped 3.7% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $323.85 and last traded at $325.91. Approximately 4,602,039 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 9,318,959 shares. The stock had previously closed at $338.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on PANW. Robert W. Baird set a $320.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Mizuho increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, FBN Securities restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $318.65.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 3.7%

The firm has a market cap of $265.62 billion, a PE ratio of 267.14, a P/E/G ratio of 11.90 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $271.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $205.80.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.00, for a total transaction of $310,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 79,644 shares in the company, valued at $27,477,180. This trade represents a 1.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.56, for a total value of $1,447,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 145,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,058,590. This represents a 3.33% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 101,239 shares of company stock valued at $27,174,360. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.