GraniteShares Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

GraniteShares Advisors LLC decreased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 97.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 184 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 6,189 shares during the period. GraniteShares Advisors LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $34,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PANW. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 108.3% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,467,692 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $502,263,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282,738 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,269,963 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $13,290,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,253,589 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 97.9% during the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,104,939 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $430,755,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,145 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $162,161,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth $151,682,000. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

PANW opened at $163.21 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 90.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $223.61. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $162.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $185.89.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Palo Alto Networks News

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

• Positive Sentiment: An insider reportedly bought about US$10.0m of PANW stock, a sign of confidence from management or insiders that can reassure investors and provide upward support to the share price. Insider Buy Article
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks published a note highlighting that PANW outperformed the broader market in the latest session, reflecting short‑term buying momentum and attention on the name. That positive market reaction can amplify interest from momentum and quant-driven flows. Zacks Upswing Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Benchmark initiated coverage of PANW (coverage initiation often brings increased analyst visibility and trading volume). Investors should watch the new rating and price target for directional cues. Coverage Initiation
• Neutral Sentiment: Local law‑firm hiring news (Arman Pahlavan joining Dorsey & Whitney in Palo Alto) is peripheral to PANW fundamentals and unlikely to move the stock materially. Business Wire Article
• Negative Sentiment: Two senior executives disclosed open‑market sales on April 1: EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares at ~$160.42 and CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares at ~$161.40. Insider sales can create near‑term selling pressure or raise governance/rotation questions, even when not unusual for executives. SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/market commentary pointing out a roughly 12% decline over three months highlights near‑term downside and investor concern, even as some pieces note SASE momentum and enterprise wins that could stabilize revenue longer term. Persistent share‑price weakness can prompt re‑rating risk. Zacks Decline Article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $157.00 to $114.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Finally, New Street Research decreased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $209.95.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,768 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.03, for a total transaction of $23,070,311.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 298,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,096,383.61. This trade represents a 28.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 149,552 shares of company stock valued at $27,779,427. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.