Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Price Target Lowered to $114.00 at HSBC

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its target price decreased by stock analysts at HSBC from $157.00 to $114.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. HSBC’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 25.17% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on PANW. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $223.00 target price (down previously from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Westpark Capital reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Thirty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $213.54.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $152.35 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks has a 52-week low of $144.15 and a 52-week high of $223.61. The stock has a market cap of $106.19 billion, a PE ratio of 84.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $180.25 and a 200-day moving average of $191.93.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 12.96%.The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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. As a group, analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.81, for a total transaction of $147,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 46,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,502,184.05. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total transaction of $2,441,625.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 260,542 shares of company stock worth $49,910,995. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,337,113 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $246,296,000 after acquiring an additional 128,316 shares during the last quarter. Plotkin Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Plotkin Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $899,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at $103,000. Blue Sparrow LLC DE bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,583,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 174,226 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $32,093,000 after purchasing an additional 5,661 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results beat expectations — PANW reported stronger-than-expected revenue and EPS, showing continued subscription/ARR momentum. Palo Alto Networks Q2 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised full-year revenue outlook (to about $11.3B) and Next‑Gen Security ARR grew strongly, supporting the platformization thesis. Palo Alto Networks Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors note a durable balance sheet and long-term platform opportunity; some view the pullback as a buy-the-dip if integration costs normalize. MarketBeat coverage of PANW
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO defended the company’s strategy amid AI/software weakness — management is positioning PANW as differentiated, but investor scrutiny on execution and margins remains. Palo Alto shares sink 8%, CEO defends cybersecurity’s position as AI hits software stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions are mixed — while several firms reaffirmed buy ratings and high targets, many trimmed price targets in light of near-term profit pressure. MarketBeat analyst roundup
• Negative Sentiment: Management flagged higher integration and deal-related costs that trimmed profit guidance, triggering the largest immediate selling pressure. Reuters: Palo Alto shares fall as deal costs pile up amid AI security push
• Negative Sentiment: Industry/coverage pieces call out that the recent M&A spree is weighing on near-term margins and profit outlook, increasing execution risk. Investopedia: Deals Are Dragging on Its Profit Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: The announced Koi acquisition (agentic endpoint security) and other buys are viewed as strategic but also raised investor concerns about further integration costs and dilution. Zacks: PANW to Buy Koi

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.