In the latest trading session, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) closed at $189.49, marking a +1.4% move from the previous day. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.64%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.47%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.52%.
Coming into today, shares of the security software maker had gained 2.18% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector gained 1.98%, while the S&P 500 gained 3%.
The upcoming earnings release of Palo Alto Networks will be of great interest to investors. On that day, Palo Alto Networks is projected to report earnings of $0.93 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 14.81%. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $2.58 billion, indicating a 14.34% upward movement from the same quarter last year.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $3.83 per share and a revenue of $10.52 billion, demonstrating changes of +14.67% and +14.06%, respectively, from the preceding year.
Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Palo Alto Networks. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1.67% lower. Palo Alto Networks currently has a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).
Looking at valuation, Palo Alto Networks is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 48.75. This indicates a discount in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 55.01.
It is also worth noting that PANW currently has a PEG ratio of 2.42. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. PANW's industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.65 as of yesterday's close.
The Security industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 57, placing it within the top 24% of over 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.
Remember to apply Zacks.com to follow these and more stock-moving metrics during the upcoming trading sessions.
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Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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