Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Acquires 14,491 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 40.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,969 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,491 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $9,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,929,063 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $12,512,533,000 after purchasing an additional 2,659,100 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 108.3% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,467,692 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $502,263,000 after purchasing an additional 1,282,738 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth about $162,161,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth about $151,682,000. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 25.1% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,532,201 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $750,875,000 after purchasing an additional 708,332 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $240.13 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.57 and a 52 week high of $248.85. The firm has a market cap of $195.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 132.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $178.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.34.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The business had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.81 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective (down from $235.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $219.49.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 52,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,103,105. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $275 and kept a Buy rating, signaling confidence in continued upside for Palo Alto Networks. Truist raises PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer lifted its target to $275 and reiterated an Outperform rating after noting encouraging signs from the company’s CyberArk-related product launch and customer feedback. Oppenheimer lifts PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho increased its target to $265 and maintained an Outperform rating, citing strength in subscriptions and possible upside to remaining performance obligations. Mizuho raises PANW target
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt also raised its target to $275 and kept a Buy rating, adding to the broad analyst optimism around the stock. Rosenblatt positive forecast
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Nikesh Arora said AI is expected to help engineers ship more features, not reduce headcount, suggesting the company sees AI as a growth driver rather than a cost-cutting story. Business Insider article
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider buying was highlighted as value-positive, but the item is more of a confidence signal than a clear near-term catalyst. Insider buying article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary noted the stock has rallied sharply and is technically overbought, which could make it vulnerable to volatility if upcoming earnings disappoint. Technical analysis article

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.