DA Davidson Boosts Earnings Estimates for Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) – Analysts at DA Davidson raised their FY2026 earnings estimates for Palo Alto Networks in a research report issued on Thursday, November 21st. DA Davidson analyst R. Kessinger now anticipates that the network technology company will post earnings per share of $4.27 for the year, up from their previous estimate of $3.44. DA Davidson currently has a “Buy” rating and a $415.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ current full-year earnings is $3.56 per share.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on PANW. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $364.00 to $399.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $421.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $410.00 price target on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, OTR Global restated a “negative” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $402.03.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $386.38 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $365.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $340.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 1.12. Palo Alto Networks has a fifty-two week low of $260.09 and a fifty-two week high of $408.53.

Palo Alto Networks shares are set to split on the morning of Monday, December 16th. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, November 20th. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Friday, December 13th.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.12 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. The business’s revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.63 EPS.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.50, for a total transaction of $11,970,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,115,567 shares in the company, valued at $370,926,027.50. This represents a 3.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.98, for a total transaction of $20,698,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,009 shares in the company, valued at $54,854,924.82. The trade was a 27.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 244,252 shares of company stock valued at $85,556,737 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PANW. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the third quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 177.4% during the third quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.