FY2026 EPS Estimates for PANW Cut by Northland Securities

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) – Equities research analysts at Northland Securities cut their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Palo Alto Networks in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, June 3rd. Northland Securities analyst N. Chokshi now forecasts that the network technology company will earn $1.97 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $2.07. Northland Securities currently has a “Market Perform” rating and a $302.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ current full-year earnings is $2.12 per share. Northland Securities also issued estimates for Palo Alto Networks’ Q4 2026 earnings at $0.46 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.37 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.47 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $1.77 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $2.30 EPS.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on PANW. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $114.00 to $207.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price target (up from $265.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Benchmark increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $270.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.59.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of PANW opened at $260.52 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 213.54, a PEG ratio of 9.45 and a beta of 0.94. Palo Alto Networks has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $302.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $187.35.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total value of $177,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 83,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,418,150.40. This represents a 1.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 72,076 shares of company stock valued at $17,930,587 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 39.7% during the third quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 176 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. now owns 1,056 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $215,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Princeton Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Princeton Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 4,823 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $982,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fayez Sarofim & Co lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 4,310 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 50 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: Palo Alto Networks recently hit a $10 billion annual revenue run rate, reinforcing that the company has grown far beyond its legacy firewall roots and continues to scale as a cybersecurity platform. Palo Alto Networks Hits $10B Revenue Run Rate Beats S&P 500 Across All Timeframes
• Positive Sentiment: Cybersecurity remains a favored theme as AI adoption grows, with industry commentary suggesting autonomous AI agents will need security protection, which could expand the long-term market for PANW’s products. Zscaler CEO: AI Will Create ‘Billions of Agents’ That Need Cybersecurity Protection
• Neutral Sentiment: Northland Securities reiterated a Market Perform view and maintained a $302 price target, while modeling earnings of $0.45 per share for Q1 2027 and $0.48 for Q2 2027, suggesting steady expectations but no major near-term catalyst from the research note. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. market data
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest data showed no meaningful change, so it does not appear to be a driver of the stock’s move today.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent post-earnings trading has been pressured by concerns that rising costs are weighing on margins, which is likely a key reason investors have been trimming the stock. PANW Stock Declines 9% Post Q3 Results: Should You Buy, Sell or Hold?

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.