Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 2.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price traded down 2.1% on Tuesday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $220.00 to $205.00. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Palo Alto Networks traded as low as $160.08 and last traded at $163.50. 14,356,438 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 40% from the average session volume of 10,240,358 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.95.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $265.00 price target (up from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, January 5th. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $220.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays set a $200.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Thirty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $223.08.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 327,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,878,351.95. The trade was a 26.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total value of $940,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 155,119 shares in the company, valued at $29,190,293.42. This represents a 3.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 260,542 shares of company stock worth $49,910,995. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Palo Alto announced intent to acquire Koi to secure the “agentic endpoint,” a strategic tuck-in to close AI/endpoint security gaps that could expand product stickiness and revenue opportunities. Palo Alto Networks Announces Intent to Acquire Koi
• Positive Sentiment: Palo Alto launched MSIAM 2.0 with an expanded breach-response guarantee and AI-driven SOC capabilities — product commercialization that could drive higher-dollar managed services and upsell. Palo Alto Networks Introduces MSIAM 2.0
• Positive Sentiment: Unit 42’s 2026 report highlights AI-driven attack acceleration and expanded attack surfaces — a market backdrop that supports sustained demand for Palo Alto’s platform and services. Unit 42 Report: AI and Attack Surface Complexity Fuel Majority of Breaches
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentators and some analysts remain bullish on cybersecurity as a beaten-down sector with upside potential, which supports interest in leaders like PANW. These Experts See Big Gains Ahead for a Set of Cybersecurity Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Palo Alto reports quarterly results after the close today — earnings and guidance will likely be the immediate volatility driver for the stock. 5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens
• Neutral Sentiment: Sell-side analysts have been updating models ahead of earnings (revisions noted), creating mixed signals rather than a clear consensus catalyst. Palo Alto Earnings Are Imminent; These Most Accurate Analysts Revise Forecasts Ahead Of Earnings Call
• Negative Sentiment: Mizuho trimmed its PANW price target to $205 from $220 (still an Outperform), a downgrade in expectations that can pressure near-term sentiment despite the maintained rating. PANW Price Target Lowered by Mizuho
• Negative Sentiment: BTIG and other brokers have cut price targets (BTIG to $200 from $248) while keeping buy ratings — target cuts can sap momentum even if conviction remains. BTIG Stays Positive on Palo Alto Networks as Channel Checks Improve

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 6,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth about $29,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 2.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $113.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.48, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $181.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.28.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.93 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 company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.46 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.56 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.