Shares of global cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks (PANW) are rising on Monday along with two catalysts. The first is a new price target from five-star analyst Alex Zukin of Wolfe Research. He raised the company’s price target on PANW stock from $200 to $220 per share while maintaining an outperform rating. This represents a potential upside of 11.93% for the stock.

The second catalyst helping PANW stock today is a stock split. The company announced a 2-for-1 stock split along with its most recent earnings report. This came into effect after markets closed on Friday. Therefore, the shares will trade on a split-adjusted basis starting today.

What this means for PANW stock

The new price target is a boon for Palo Alto Networks as it boosts investor confidence in its shares. In his letter to clients, Zukin noted that now is not only “an amazing time to not only be alive but also to cover software stocks.” He cites improved fundamentals, a relaxed regulatory environment, tailwinds from artificial intelligence (AI) and strong capital markets as reasons for this statement.

As a result of the stock split, the price of PANW shares will also fall without affecting the company’s market capitalization. Palo Alto Networks is thus lowering the hurdle to investing in its shares. That could attract a new group of shareholders who have previously been unwilling to pay nearly $400 per share for their shares, which would be a boon for the stock.

Is PANW stock a buy, sell or hold?

Looking at Wall Street, the analyst consensus rating for Palo Alto Networks is Strong Buy, based on 32 Buys, four Holds, and one Sell over the past three months. This results in an average price target of $212.30, a high of $232.20 and a low of $145.50. This represents a potential upside of 8.01% for PANW stock.

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