Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

Palo Alto Networks (PANW - Free Report) ended the recent trading session at $362.35, demonstrating a -1.12% swing from the preceding day's closing price. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.27%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.65%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.26%.

Heading into today, shares of the security software maker had gained 9.14% over the past month, outpacing the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 2.21% and the S&P 500's gain of 2% in that time.

The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Palo Alto Networks in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.48, up 7.25% from the prior-year quarter. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $2.12 billion, indicating a 12.81% growth compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $6.26 per share and revenue of $9.13 billion, which would represent changes of +10.41% and +13.75%, respectively, from the prior year.

It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Palo Alto Networks. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.06% higher. Currently, Palo Alto Networks is carrying a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Looking at valuation, Palo Alto Networks is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 58.51. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 31.88, which means Palo Alto Networks is trading at a premium to the group.

We can additionally observe that PANW currently boasts a PEG ratio of 3.03. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. By the end of yesterday's trading, the Internet - Software industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.1.

The Internet - Software industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 61, positioning it in the top 25% of all 250+ industries.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW) - free report >>

Published in