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Can Prisma Access Browser Keep PANW Ahead in SASE Growth?
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Key Takeaways
Palo Alto Networks' SASE ARR grew 35% year over year in Q4, over twice the market's growth pace.
Prisma Access Browser sold over 3M licenses in Q4, doubling total seat count to more than 6M sequentially.
AI-driven browser security is emerging as a key growth catalyst as enterprises shift to cloud-based work.
Palo Alto Networks ((PANW - Free Report) ) is seeing strong momentum in its Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) business, where much of that growth is coming from its Prisma Access Browser. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, SASE Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) rose 35% year over year, which the management stated to be more than twice the pace of the overall market. The Prisma Access Browser accounted for a big part of this momentum, with over three million licenses sold in the fourth quarter and total seat count doubling to more than six million on a sequential basis.
Prisma Access Browser is becoming a key layer of security as more work moves to the cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the workplace. The browser allows secure access to web and software-as-a-service apps, protecting users and data in real time, regardless of where employees are located. Palo Alto Networks believes the browser will become the new operating system for enterprise work in the AI era, serving as the main interface for applications and data.
Management also expects this trend to fuel long-term SASE demand. The company says browsers will soon be integral to every secure access stack, especially as AI-driven agents interact through web interfaces. Large customers are already deploying Prisma Access Browser at scale, such as a U.S. pharmaceutical firm that bought 80,000 seats in the fourth quarter.
As AI adoption accelerates, PANW’s early investment in browser security may give it a lasting lead in the next stage of network protection and help sustain its strong SASE growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ fiscal 2026 total revenues is pegged at $10.42 billion, indicating a year-over-year increase of 13%.
How Competitors Fare Against PANW
Zscaler((ZS - Free Report) ) and Fortinet ((FTNT - Free Report) ) are key rivals to Palo Alto Networks in the SASE space.
Zscaler is also expanding into browser-based security.Zscaler offers cloud-native secure access through its Zscaler Internet Access and Zscaler Private Access platforms. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, Zscaler saw continued demand from customers replacing legacy VPNs with its zero-trust architecture.
Fortinet is growing fast, driven by the rising adoption of its FortiSASE platform. During the second quarter of 2025, Fortinet’s SASE ARR grew 22% year over year. Fortinet stands out by delivering all core SASE capabilities within a single operating system. Fortinet also offers Sovereign SASE, a tailored solution for large enterprises and service providers that require full on-premises or in-country control of their data.
PANW’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Palo Alto Networks have gained 16.5% year to date compared with the Zacks Security industry’s growth of 19.4%.
PANW YTD Price Return Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Palo Alto Networks trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 13.21X, slightly above the industry’s average of 13.04X.
PANW Forward 12-Month P/S Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ fiscal 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 13.5% and 13.2%, respectively. The estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have both been revised upward over the past 60 days.
Image: Bigstock
Can Prisma Access Browser Keep PANW Ahead in SASE Growth?
Key Takeaways
Palo Alto Networks ((PANW - Free Report) ) is seeing strong momentum in its Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) business, where much of that growth is coming from its Prisma Access Browser. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, SASE Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) rose 35% year over year, which the management stated to be more than twice the pace of the overall market. The Prisma Access Browser accounted for a big part of this momentum, with over three million licenses sold in the fourth quarter and total seat count doubling to more than six million on a sequential basis.
Prisma Access Browser is becoming a key layer of security as more work moves to the cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the workplace. The browser allows secure access to web and software-as-a-service apps, protecting users and data in real time, regardless of where employees are located. Palo Alto Networks believes the browser will become the new operating system for enterprise work in the AI era, serving as the main interface for applications and data.
Management also expects this trend to fuel long-term SASE demand. The company says browsers will soon be integral to every secure access stack, especially as AI-driven agents interact through web interfaces. Large customers are already deploying Prisma Access Browser at scale, such as a U.S. pharmaceutical firm that bought 80,000 seats in the fourth quarter.
As AI adoption accelerates, PANW’s early investment in browser security may give it a lasting lead in the next stage of network protection and help sustain its strong SASE growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ fiscal 2026 total revenues is pegged at $10.42 billion, indicating a year-over-year increase of 13%.
How Competitors Fare Against PANW
Zscaler ((ZS - Free Report) ) and Fortinet ((FTNT - Free Report) ) are key rivals to Palo Alto Networks in the SASE space.
Zscaler is also expanding into browser-based security.Zscaler offers cloud-native secure access through its Zscaler Internet Access and Zscaler Private Access platforms. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, Zscaler saw continued demand from customers replacing legacy VPNs with its zero-trust architecture.
Fortinet is growing fast, driven by the rising adoption of its FortiSASE platform. During the second quarter of 2025, Fortinet’s SASE ARR grew 22% year over year. Fortinet stands out by delivering all core SASE capabilities within a single operating system. Fortinet also offers Sovereign SASE, a tailored solution for large enterprises and service providers that require full on-premises or in-country control of their data.
PANW’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Palo Alto Networks have gained 16.5% year to date compared with the Zacks Security industry’s growth of 19.4%.
PANW YTD Price Return Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Palo Alto Networks trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 13.21X, slightly above the industry’s average of 13.04X.
PANW Forward 12-Month P/S Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Palo Alto Networks’ fiscal 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 13.5% and 13.2%, respectively. The estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have both been revised upward over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Palo Alto Networks currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.