Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading Down 6.8% Following Analyst Downgrade

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price traded down 6.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on the stock from $200.00 to $185.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Palo Alto Networks traded as low as $147.15 and last traded at $152.35. 26,707,249 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 146% from the average session volume of 10,877,143 shares. The stock had previously closed at $163.50.

PANW has been the topic of several other reports. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Mizuho set a $200.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective (up from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Thirty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.68.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.91, for a total transaction of $23,177,738.34. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 327,645 shares in the company, valued at $62,878,351.95. The trade was a 26.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total value of $940,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 155,119 shares in the company, valued at $29,190,293.42. This trade represents a 3.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 260,542 shares of company stock valued at $49,910,995 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Palo Alto Networks News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results beat estimates—EPS $1.03 and revenue roughly $2.59B; Next‑Gen Security ARR grew ~33% and RPO rose, supporting recurring revenue momentum. Palo Alto Networks Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised full‑year revenue outlook to about $11.28–11.31B, signaling continued top‑line strength from its platform strategy. Palo Alto Networks Lifts Revenue Outlook as Second‑Quarter Profit Jumps (WSJ)
• Positive Sentiment: Management is investing to secure the AI/agentic endpoint (Koi acquisition) and expand capabilities (CyberArk, Chronosphere), which could strengthen long‑term competitive positioning. Palo Alto Announces Intent to Acquire Koi (PRNewswire)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and firms are mixed—some reaffirmed outperform/buy ratings and cited long‑term upside while others trimmed price targets; overall street sentiment remains largely constructive but cautious. Jefferies: Palo Alto to emerge stronger despite M&A headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: Management lowered near‑term profit guidance, citing higher integration and acquisition costs—this cut to the profit outlook is the primary driver of the share decline. Palo Alto shares fall as deal costs pile up (Reuters)
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokers trimmed price targets and adjusted models after the guidance update (Deutsche, Goldman, Scotiabank, Loop, Stifel, BMO, Needham, Susquehanna, etc.), adding selling pressure. Analyst price‑target adjustments (MarketScreener example)
• Negative Sentiment: Sector and AI‑software weakness amplified the move—CEO sought to defend the company’s differentiation, but market sentiment for high‑growth software names remains tenuous. Palo Alto shares sink as CEO defends strategy (CNBC)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 6,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $29,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 6.8%

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $180.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $191.93. The firm has a market cap of $106.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.17, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 18.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.650-3.700 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.800 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.