PANW Palo Alto Networks, Inc. - Fundamental Analysis
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PANW Stock | Fundamental Analysis & Investment Insights
NASDAQ
Technology
Software - Infrastructure
Current Price
Live
$187.66
Analyst Target
$227.49
+21.2%
Upside
52W High
$223.61
52W Low
$144.15
At a glance
Key valuation, profitability, growth, and risk metrics.
Updated Jan 17, 2026
Market cap
$130.8B
P/E
118.77
ROE
15.3%
Profit margin
11.7%
Debt/Equity
0.05
Dividend yield
N/A
AI Analysis
Powered by advanced machine learning algorithms
Confidence Score
65%
Analysis Accuracy
PANW's Advanced Deterministic Scorecard reveals a mixed profile: the Piotroski F-Score of 4/9 indicates stable but not strong financial health, while the absence of an Altman Z-Score prevents a full distress risk assessment. Despite solid revenue growth and high gross margins, elevated valuation multiples and declining earnings growth raise concerns. Insider selling activity and weak technical trends contrast with a bullish analyst consensus and strong historical price performance over the long term. The stock trades significantly above both the Graham Number ($21.1) and intrinsic value estimate ($11.06), reflecting premium pricing for future growth expectations.
Key Strengths
Strong revenue growth at 15.7% YoY, outpacing broader market averages in some periods
Exceptional gross margin of 73.47%, indicating pricing power and low cost of sales
Low debt burden with Debt/Equity ratio of just 0.05, suggesting conservative capital structure
Consistent earnings beat streak with 3 out of last 4 quarters exceeding estimates
High analyst coverage (47 analysts) and unanimous buy recommendation signal institutional confidence
Key Risks
Piotroski F-Score of 4/9 indicates only stable financial health, with weaknesses in profitability and leverage trends
Elevated valuation: P/E of 118.77 and Price/Sales of 13.43 are significantly above sector averages
Negative YoY earnings growth of -4.1% despite revenue growth, raising margin pressure concerns
Current Ratio of 0.98 and Quick Ratio of 0.85 suggest potential near-term liquidity constraints
Bearish insider sentiment with $53.69M in net insider selling over the last 6 months
AI Fair Value Estimate
Based on comprehensive analysis
$115.5
-38.5% below current price
Performance Snowflake
Multi-dimensional analysis across 5 key categories
Overall
45
Moderate
35
68
70
52
0
AI Verdict
Moderate potential with significant valuation and execution risks
Key drivers: High growth and strong margins, Rich valuation multiples, Stable but not strong financial health, Bearish insider activity, Bullish analyst outlook
Confidence
70%
Value
35/100
Ref P/E, PEG, Graham Number
Positives
- Below-average PEG ratio (implied as growth is positive despite high P/E)
Watchpoints
- P/E of 118.77 far exceeds sector average of 111.16 and historical norms
- Price/Sales of 13.43 is extremely high, indicating overvaluation relative to sales
- Current price ($187.66) is more than 8x the Graham Number ($21.1)
Future
68/100
Ref Growth rates
Positives
- Revenue growth of 15.7% YoY is solid for a large-cap tech firm
- Analyst target price of $227.49 implies 21% upside
Watchpoints
- Earnings growth is negative YoY (-4.1%) and QoQ (-4.8%)
- Forward P/E of 43.26 remains high despite expected improvement
Past
70/100
Ref Historical trends
Positives
- 5-year return of +209.3% shows exceptional long-term performance
- Consistent earnings beats over the last 4 quarters (avg. surprise +4.22%)
- Historical EPS growth of +19.2% YoY in latest period
Watchpoints
- Recent 6-month return of -4.2% indicates short-term weakness
- Technical trend score of 0/100 suggests bearish momentum
Health
52/100
Ref Altman Z-Score, Piotroski F-Score
Positives
- Debt/Equity ratio of 0.05 is very low, indicating minimal leverage risk
- ROE of 15.32% is decent, though below sector average of 29.76%
Watchpoints
- Piotroski F-Score of 4/9 indicates only stable financial condition
- Current Ratio (0.98) and Quick Ratio (0.85) below 1.0 signal liquidity risk
- Altman Z-Score not available, limiting distress risk analysis
Dividend
0/100
Ref Yield, Payout
Positives
No standout positives identified.
Watchpoints
- No dividend paid (yield N/A)
- Dividend strength score of 0/100
- Payout ratio is 0%, but company does not return capital via dividends
Stock Price & Analyst Targets
Real-time price movements and analyst price targets
Current Price
$187.66
Analyst Target
$227.49
Upside/Downside
+21.2%
Multi-Horizon Performance vs Peers
Price momentum across 5Y → 1W horizons for PANW and closest competitors.
Updated 2026-01-16
| Company | 5Y | 3Y | 1Y | 6M | 1M | 1W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
PANW
Palo Alto Networks, Inc.
Primary
|
+209.3% | +164.3% | +5.9% | -4.2% | +2.3% | -0.7% |
|
NOW
ServiceNow, Inc.
Peer
|
+22.6% | +52.2% | -39.8% | -33.9% | -18.6% | -10.2% |
|
ARM
Arm Holdings plc
Peer
|
+82.0% | +82.0% | +3.3% | -23.2% | -7.6% | +1.2% |
|
CRWD
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc.
Peer
|
+104.5% | +334.6% | +24.9% | -4.6% | -3.4% | -3.5% |
|
ADI
Analog Devices, Inc.
Peer
|
+120.9% | +72.5% | +52.5% | +25.6% | -8.9% | -3.1% |
Positive values indicate cumulative gains over the specified period. Comparables pulled from the same sector to highlight whether momentum is stock-specific or industry-wide.
Historical Performance Trends
Long-term financial metrics and growth patterns
Revenue & Net Income
Profit & Operating Margins
Return on Equity (ROE)
Quarterly Revenue Growth
Historical data shows last 12 quarters (3 years)
Valuation Metrics
Key valuation ratios and pricing indicators
P/E Ratio
118.77
Forward P/E
43.26
PEG Ratio
N/A
P/B Ratio
14.99
P/S Ratio
13.43
EV/Revenue
13.29
EV/EBITDA
91.89
Market Cap
$130.8B
Profitability
Profit margins and return metrics
Profit Margin
11.69%
Operating Margin
12.01%
Gross Margin
73.47%
ROE
15.32%
ROA
3.18%
Growth
Revenue and earnings growth rates
Revenue Growth
+15.7%
Earnings Growth
-4.1%
Q/Q Revenue Growth
N/A
Q/Q Earnings Growth
-4.8%
Financial Health
Balance sheet strength and liquidity metrics
Debt/Equity
0.05
Low debt
Current Ratio
0.98
Weak
Quick Ratio
0.85
Poor
Cash/Share
$6.04
Quarterly Earnings History
EPS performance vs analyst estimates
2026-02-12
$N/A
2025-11-19
$0.93
+4.4% surprise
2025-08-18
$0.95
+7.3% surprise
2025-05-20
$0.37
+1.0% surprise
Technology Sector Comparison
Comparing PANW against 149 companies in the Technology sector
(10 bullish, 66 neutral, 73 bearish)
P/E Ratio
118.77
This Stock
vs
90.97
Sector Avg
+30.6%
(Expensive)
Return on Equity (ROE)
15.32%
This Stock
vs
-8.13%
Sector Avg
-288.5%
(Below Avg)
Profit Margin
11.69%
This Stock
vs
-7.75%
Sector Avg
-250.7%
(Weaker)
Debt to Equity
0.05
This Stock
vs
0.76
Sector Avg
-93.5%
(Less Debt)
Revenue Growth
15.7%
This Stock
vs
56.87%
Sector Avg
-72.4%
(Slower)
Current Ratio
0.98
This Stock
vs
3.33
Sector Avg
-70.5%
(Weaker)
Similar Companies
Peer comparison within the same industry
| Company | AI Rating | Market Cap | P/E | ROE | Profit Margin | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
PANW
Palo Alto Networks, Inc.
|
NEUTRAL | $130.8B | 118.77 | 15.3% | 11.7% | $187.66 | |
|
NOW
ServiceNow, Inc.
|
NEUTRAL | $134.33B | 77.16 | 16.8% | 13.7% | $127.31 | |
|
ARM
Arm Holdings plc
|
NEUTRAL | $122.93B | 154.33 | 11.3% | 17.1% | $115.75 | |
|
CRWD
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc.
|
NEUTRAL | $114.42B | - | -8.8% | -6.9% | $453.88 | |
|
ADI
Analog Devices, Inc.
|
BEARISH | $149.42B | 55.85 | 7.9% | 23.0% | $306.07 |
Recent Insider Trading
Insider buy and sell transactions from the last 6 months
| Date | Insider | Position | Transaction | Shares | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-08 | KLARICH LEE | Chief Technology Officer | Option Exercise | 92,010 | $2,967,322 |
| 2026-01-08 | KLARICH LEE | Chief Technology Officer | Sale | 120,768 | $23,070,681 |
| 2026-01-02 | JENKINS WILLIAM D JR | President | Sale | 904 | $167,068 |
| 2026-01-02 | PAUL JOSHUA D. | Officer | Sale | 800 | $147,848 |
| 2025-12-26 | JENKINS WILLIAM D JR | President | Sale | 6,218 | $1,169,423 |
| 2025-12-23 | GOLECHHA DIPAK | Chief Financial Officer | Sale | 5,000 | $940,910 |
| 2025-12-10 | GOODBURN MARK A | Director | Stock Award | 4,944 | - |
| 2025-12-10 | KLARICH LEE | Officer and Director | Gift | 50,000 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | KEY JOHN PHILLIP | Director | Stock Award | 2,288 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | THORNING SCHMIDT HELLE | Director | Stock Award | 1,983 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | MCCARTHY MARY PAT | Director | Stock Award | 2,033 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | DONOVAN JOHN M | Director | Stock Award | 2,516 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | ESCHENBACH CARL M | Director | Stock Award | 1,881 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | BAWA APARNA | Director | Stock Award | 2,160 | - |
| 2025-12-09 | TWOHILL LORRAINE | Director | Stock Award | 2,135 | - |
Insider transactions can signal confidence or concerns about company prospects
Wall Street Analysts
Professional analyst ratings and price targets
Consensus
BUY
47 analysts
UBS
2026-01-13
Neutral
Neutral
Piper Sandler
2026-01-05
Overweight
Overweight
Guggenheim
2026-01-05
Sell
Neutral
Morgan Stanley
2025-12-18
Overweight
Overweight
HSBC
2025-11-21
Hold
Reduce
Goldman Sachs
2025-11-21
Buy
Buy
UBS
2025-11-20
Neutral
Neutral
Oppenheimer
2025-11-20
Outperform
Outperform
Piper Sandler
2025-11-20
Overweight
Overweight
WestPark Capital
2025-11-20
Hold
Hold
Past News Coverage
Recent headlines mentioning PANW from our newsroom.
Newest → oldest
No matching news yet.