Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Cut to Moderate Sell at Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) from a hold rating to a moderate sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

PANW has been the topic of several other research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price (up from $235.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. HSBC downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $157.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $216.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $223.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Thirty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.09.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.2%

PANW opened at $182.90 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks has a 52 week low of $144.15 and a 52 week high of $223.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $208.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $197.37. The firm has a market cap of $125.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.95.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The network technology company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 in the previous year, the business earned $1.56 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.800-3.900 EPS. Q2 2026 guidance at 0.930-0.950 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.97, for a total value of $153,979.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 47,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,449,674.85. This represents a 1.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.19, for a total value of $1,020,950.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 96,135 shares in the company, valued at $19,629,805.65. This trade represents a 4.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,215,130 shares of company stock valued at $249,031,488. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 9.1% in the third quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 2,103 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth about $23,742,000. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 15.4% during the third quarter. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,086 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 4,565 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $930,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Portus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,306,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.