Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading Down 7.2% – Time to Sell?

07 Feb 2026, 11:20 by Doug Wharley · The Cerbat Gem

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Free Report) shares traded down 7.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $154.05 and last traded at $154.77. 12,749,095 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 82% from the average session volume of 6,994,961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PANW. Northland Securities increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. HSBC downgraded Palo Alto Networks from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $157.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, November 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group set a $215.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Thirty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $229.09.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $185.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.51. The company has a market capitalization of $111.05 billion, a PE ratio of 100.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.05% and a net margin of 11.69%.The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director James J. Goetz sold 12,500 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total value of $2,441,625.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 75,184 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,685,690.72. The trade was a 14.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.81, for a total value of $147,848.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 46,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,502,184.05. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 260,542 shares of company stock worth $49,910,995. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Klingman & Associates LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 2,131 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.8% during the third quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,742 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $558,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,692 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 2,467 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, PTM Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. PTM Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.