Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Updates FY24 Earnings Guidance

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) updated its FY24 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $5.40-5.53 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $5.34. The company issued revenue guidance of $8.15-8.20 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $8.18 billion. Palo Alto Networks also updated its Q2 guidance to $1.29-1.31 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on PANW. Westpark Capital began coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 30th. They issued a buy rating and a $340.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 25th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Mizuho increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, August 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $273.26.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.2 %

PANW stock opened at $247.59 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $244.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $233.71. Palo Alto Networks has a 1-year low of $132.22 and a 1-year high of $265.90. The firm has a market cap of $76.96 billion, a PE ratio of 140.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.15. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 48.58% and a net margin of 8.52%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.15 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 2,040 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.01, for a total value of $499,820.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 37,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,151,613.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $61,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 30,285 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,419,825. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 2,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.01, for a total value of $499,820.40. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 37,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,151,613.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 176,890 shares of company stock valued at $42,637,820. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 61.8% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 55 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 85.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.