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

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In the latest trading session, Palo Alto Networks (PANW - Free Report) closed at $370.32, marking a -0.99% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.26% gain on the day.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the security software maker had lost 3.67% over the past month. This has lagged the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 2.31% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.37% in that time.

Investors will be hoping for strength from PANW as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be August 23, 2021. On that day, PANW is projected to report earnings of $1.44 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 2.7%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $1.17 billion, up 23.44% from the year-ago period.

It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for PANW. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team 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.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. PANW is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Investors should also note PANW's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 52.83. This valuation marks a no noticeable deviation compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 52.83.

It is also worth noting that PANW currently has a PEG ratio of 2.26. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. PANW's industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.97 as of yesterday's close.

The Security industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 110, which puts it in the top 44% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


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