The Palo Alto Networks Options: A Look at What the Big Money Thinks – Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW)

Investors with lots of money to spend have taken a bearish stance Palo Alto Networks PANW.

And retailers should know.

That’s what we noticed today when the trades started showing up in the publicly available options history we track here at Benzinga.

We don’t know whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals. But when something this big happens with PANW, it often means someone knows something is going to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga’s options scanner discovered 23 unusual options trades for Palo Alto Networks.

That’s not normal.

The overall sentiment of these major traders is 30% bullish and 47% bearish.

Of all the special options we uncovered, 5 are puts totaling $168,183 and 18 are calls totaling $752,562.

Forecasted price targets

Taking into account the volume and open interest in these contracts, it appears that whales have targeted a price range of $190.0 to $510.0 for Palo Alto Networks over the past three months.

Insights into volume and open interest

Looking at volume and open interest is an insightful way to do due diligence on a stock.

This data allows you to track the liquidity and interest in Palo Alto Networks options at a specific strike price.

Below we can observe the evolution of call and put volume and open interest for all Palo Alto Networks whale activity within a strike price range of $190.0 to $510.0 over the past 30 days.

Palo Alto Networks Options Activity Analysis: Last 30 Days

Biggest options discovered:

symbol	PUT/CALL	Type of trade	Feeling	Exp. Date	Questions	bid	Price	Strike price	Total trading price	Open interest	volume
PANW	CALL	TRADE	NEUTRAL	11/15/24	$19.2	$18.65	$18.97	$370.00	$94.8k	1.7K	71
PANW	CALL	TRADE	BEARISH	01/17/25	$18.9	$18.75	$18.75	$400.00	$75,0000	2.4K	666
PANW	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	10/18/24	$8.25	$8.25	$8.25	$370.00	$72.6k	2.1K	453
PANW	CALL	SWEEP	BULLISH	10/18/24	$8.3	$8.2	$8.2	$370.00	$50,000	2.1K	514
PANW	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	10/18/24	$9.4	$9.3	$9.3	$370.00	$46.5k	2.1K	1.0K

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks is a platform-based cybersecurity provider with product offerings in network security, cloud security and security operations. The California-based company has more than 80,000 enterprise customers worldwide, including more than three-quarters of the Global 2000.

Current position of Palo Alto Networks

• On a volume of 965,884, the price of PANW increased by 1.14% to $377.48.
• RSI indicators suggest that the underlying stock may be overbought.
• The next earnings are expected to be released in 27 days.

Professional analyst ratings for Palo Alto Networks

In the last month, 4 experts have published ratings on this stock with an average price target of $416.5.

Turn $1,000 into $1,270 in just 20 days?

The 20-year-old professional options trader reveals his one-line chart technique that shows when to buy and sell. Copy his trades, which have averaged a 27% profit every 20 days. Click here for access. * In a cautious move, an analyst at Exane BNP Paribas downgraded his rating to “Outperform” and set a price target of $410. * A Barclays analyst maintains an Overweight rating on Palo Alto Networks with a price target of $410. * A Morgan Stanley analyst maintains an Overweight rating on Palo Alto Networks with a price target of $421. * A Goldman Sachs analyst maintains a Buy rating on Palo Alto Networks and maintains a $425 price target.

Trading options involve greater risks, but also offer the potential for higher profits. Experienced traders mitigate these risks through continuous education, strategic trading adjustments, use of various indicators and monitoring market dynamics. Stay on top of the latest Palo Alto Networks options trades with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.