Shares of cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks (PANW) are edging lower in Monday’s pre-market trading as the company prepares to release its Q4 2026 earnings tomorrow, September 1, after market close. With the stock trading around $371.59, the options market is pricing in a 9.55% move in either direction after the results. That implies a potential trading range of about $336.11 to $407.07.
The Implied Move Breakdown
The options-implied move shows how much traders expect PANW stock to swing after earnings. It does not predict whether the stock will rise or fall.
How This Compares with Past Earnings Moves
Options-implied moves reflect what traders expect to happen after earnings, while historical price reactions provide a useful benchmark. Over the past four quarters, PANW has averaged a 5.7% one-day move after earnings.
That is below the current implied move of 9.5%, suggesting options traders are pricing in a larger reaction this quarter.
What Analysts Expect from PANW’s Q4 Earnings
Wall Street expects Palo Alto to report Q4 2026 adjusted EPS of $0.98, up about 3% year over year. Revenue is expected to jump by 32% to $3.35 billion.
Heading into the Q4 print, analysts remain bullish on the stock. Recently, DA Davidson’s five-star analyst Rudy Kessinger maintained his Buy rating on the stock. However, this price target of $345 implies 7% downside. Kessinger expects Palo Alto to exceed consensus on all metrics despite high expectations. He notes that the company must show an AI-driven boost in earnings or guidance for PANW stock to rally.
Meanwhile, BTIG’s five-star analyst Gray Powell reaffirmed his Buy rating on Palo Alto shares with a price target of $380 per share. Powell expects Palo Alto’s revenue to be growing at nearly 17% year-over-year by the end of its fiscal 2026 fourth quarter.
Is Palo Alto a Good Stock to Buy Now?
On Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on Palo Alto shares. This is based on 37 Buys and five Holds issued over the past three months. However, the average PANW price target of $369.68 implies about 0.52% downside risk (see PANW stock forecast here).
