MQS Management LLC Buys Shares of 2,256 Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,256 shares of the network technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $362,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $420 from $325 and kept an overweight rating, signaling further upside potential. Wells Fargo target raise
• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane lifted its target to $380 from $330 and reiterated an outperform rating, adding to the bullish analyst tone around PANW. BNP Paribas Exane target raise
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG Research also raised its target to $380 from $333 and maintained a buy rating, reinforcing expectations for continued share-price strength. BTIG target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlighted PANW’s strong fiscal Q3 results, with revenue and ARR beats and growing demand tied to AI-driven cybersecurity and observability, which has helped keep sentiment constructive. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Several insiders sold small blocks of stock, including CAO Josh D. Paul and Director Aparna Bawa. While routine, insider selling can modestly temper enthusiasm for the stock. SEC filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, Director John P. Key sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.24, for a total transaction of $2,094,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,490,500. The trade was a 37.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares of the 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 79,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,477,180. This trade represents a 1.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 102,111 shares of company stock worth $27,204,024. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of PANW opened at $352.04 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $358.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $286.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 288.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $251.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $199.26.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The firm’s revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. 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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up from $265.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Mizuho upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $270.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Arete Research raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $433.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $316.15.

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.