We recently published a list of 10 AI News Investors Shouldn’t Miss. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) stands against other AI news investors shouldn’t miss.
Heading into next year, the outlook for artificial intelligence is quite optimistic. It is anticipated that the AI boom will continue boosting US stocks next year, supporting economic growth. However, there is a looming risk of rising U.S. government debt levels which could threaten its upbeat 2025 forecasts at the same time. As per the BlackRock Investment Institute, technological innovations in AI will benefit US stocks more than their European peers.
READ ALSO: 10 AI News Taking Wall Street By Storm and Top 12 AI Stock News and Ratings Dominating Wall Street
Meanwhile, private markets will increasingly play a key role in financing AI-related infrastructure. The institution further stated that economic growth may cool next year, but it is anticipated that the Federal Reserve will not be able to lower interest rates meaningfully given that inflation remains sticky and above the central bank’s target.
“We’re watching very closely rate repricing dynamics, we’re also watching very closely tariffs announcements that can lead to higher inflation expectations and markets volatility”.
-Chief Investment Strategist Wei Li
The current year was marked by concerns over the high valuations of the Mag 7 stocks, and investors are keenly watching how things will turn out this year. In particular, Citigroup analysts are generally optimistic for 2025, noting how the Magnificent 7 isn’t trading at unprecedented valuations. Instead, it is the other S&P-500 stocks that are at a higher risk.
On the other hand, Goldman Sachs analysts anticipate that the Magnificent 7 will continue outperforming the rest of the S&P-500 in 2025, albeit only by 7 percentage points. This is the lowest amount that it has witnessed in seven years. In turn, UBS analysts anticipate 16% earnings growth in 2025 for AI-related companies and the broader technology sector.
“With big tech looking to spend over USD 200bn in capex this year, we believe further innovation is in store for the technology. AI is disrupting traditional industries, from video-making and music, to education, to name a few”.
– Solita Marcelli, chief investment officer Americas
Even though there is optimism around AI, some experts are also advising caution. An MIT economist Daron Acemoglu estimates that only 5% of jobs will be replaced or substantially assisted by AI within the next decade. This prediction warns of potential overinvestment and the risk of an economic downturn, similar to the dot-com bubble in the early 2000s. Looking at different analyst’s predictions, it is safe to say that while AI is poised to drive significant advancements and economic growth by 2025, adopting a balanced approach will help in fully harnessing its potential.
For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A cutting-edge computer lab full of IT experts monitoring the security of multiple systems.
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 64
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) is a leader in AI-powered cybersecurity. On December 19, Jefferies raised the firm’s price target on Palo Alto Networks to $240 from $225 and kept a “Buy” rating on the shares. According to the analyst, software stocks are going to witness a slow start because of changes in the administration. More importantly, material benefits from artificial intelligence are unlikely to materialize until late 2025. The firm still expects cybersecurity to demonstrate greater resilience in the first half of the year due to strong fundamentals. This is despite that it may lag behind a broader AI-driven rebound in the software market.
Overall, PANW ranks 4th on our list of AI news investors shouldn’t miss. While we acknowledge the potential of PANW as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PANW but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
