Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Purchased by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 24.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,335 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 4,027 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $6,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of PANW. 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 acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Arete Research boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $433.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $160.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $370.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.42.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $371.59 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $344.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $248.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 304.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.91. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $398.88.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. Equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 290 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.74, for a total value of $101,134.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,244,839.38. The trade was a 4.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,835 shares of company stock worth $11,127,854. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark raised its price target to $400 from $340 and maintained a Buy rating, citing potential upside to next-generation security annual recurring revenue, revenue, operating income and margins. The forecast reinforces expectations that Palo Alto Networks’ AI-security strategy is gaining traction. Palo Alto Networks Gets a $400 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are taking confidence from CrowdStrike’s stronger-than-expected results, which highlighted robust AI-related cybersecurity demand and lifted sentiment across the sector. Palo Alto Networks is viewed as a potential beneficiary of the same spending cycle. Palo Alto Networks Stock Trades Up
• Positive Sentiment: Platformization, adoption of AI-security products and recent deal wins are expected to support fourth-quarter growth. BTIG also assigned PANW a Buy rating, adding to broadly favorable analyst coverage. Palo Alto Networks to Report Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings are the next major catalyst. Traders expect potentially significant movement after the report, while analysts are watching recurring revenue, margins, operating income and guidance—not just revenue and EPS. Expected Post-Earnings Stock Move
• Negative Sentiment: Acquisition-related costs could pressure results, and the stock’s triple-digit P/E ratio—above 300 based on the supplied data—means much of the AI-growth outlook may already be reflected in the price. Any shortfall in growth or guidance could trigger profit-taking. Palo Alto’s Rally Has One Big Problem Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Accounting Officer Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares for approximately $318,000, reducing his position by 1.21%. The transaction is small relative to his remaining holdings but may create a modest sentiment headwind. Palo Alto Networks Insider Sale

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.