Palo Alto Networks beats quarterly estimates on AI demand, continues acquisition spree

Palo Alto Networks surpassed fiscal fourth-quarter estimates as mounting artificial intelligence risks boost demand for its cybersecurity tools.

Shares dipped about 2% in extended trading, following a 5% drop during the regular session.

Revenue jumped 34% during the quarter from $2.54 billion a year ago, the company said. Palo Alto reported a net loss of $282 million, or 35 cents per share, down from net income of $254 million, or 36 cents per share, a year ago.

The acceleration of AI attacks is forcing customers to build better and faster cyber defenses, CEO Nikesh Arora told CNBC. Those concerns have already moved the needle, but the long-term growth runway is still in the early stages.

"This is a long-term tailwind," he said. "It will not happen in one quarter, and it will not happen in two. It just underpins the long-term duration from a growth rate perspective for our business."

Arora joined CNBC's Jim Cramer on " Mad Money " following the earnings call and said the AI threat is forcing companies to upgrade aging cyber infrastructure.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks have nearly doubled this year as the rise of highly capable AI models like Anthropic 's Mythos spurs demand for newer security tools to detect and respond to agentic cyberattacks.

Agentic AI concerns have accelerated as breaches, like the OpenAI - Hugging Face hack, prove that agents can increasingly plan and orchestrate attacks autonomously.