Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Sold by Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co trimmed its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 132,298 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 5,879 shares during the period. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $24,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,736,916 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $6,055,031,000 after buying an additional 505,924 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,989,257 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $2,934,935,000 after buying an additional 540,756 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,528,248 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,532,902,000 after buying an additional 36,511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,906,963 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,202,776,000 after buying an additional 611,375 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple Wall Street firms raised their price targets on PANW this week, including Benchmark to $270, Wedbush to $300, and Wells Fargo reaffirming a Buy with a $285 target, reinforcing optimism around the company’s long-term growth story. Benchmark price target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain upbeat on Palo Alto Networks’ platform expansion and cybersecurity demand, with coverage framing the company as a potential beneficiary of AI-driven security needs. AI security supercycle article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports ahead of Q3 earnings highlight strong platform growth, but investors are waiting for confirmation in the company’s results and guidance before making a bigger move. Q3 earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Market chatter around the upcoming earnings release and key operating metrics is keeping PANW in focus, but this is more of a wait-and-see catalyst than a fresh driver. Wall Street estimates preview
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors are cautious because acquisition costs are rising and share dilution could pressure near-term earnings quality. Acquisition costs and dilution concern
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment across cybersecurity stocks has also been pressured by weak peer guidance, and an insider sale by EVP Lee Klarich added a modest overhang. Insider sale

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 62,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.65, for a total value of $16,270,119.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 235,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,037,002.95. This trade represents a 21.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John P. Key sold 1,572 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.32, for a total transaction of $272,459.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,466,400. The trade was a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 93,660 shares of company stock worth $21,346,475. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.7%

Shares of PANW opened at $257.77 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $261.41. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $190.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 142.41, a PEG ratio of 8.96 and a beta of 0.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PANW has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. DA Davidson set a $190.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Argus raised shares of Palo Alto Networks to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.28.

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.