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Palo Alto Networks Poised To Acquire CyberArk in $25B Deal
Palo Alto Networks, a major security provider that has deeply integrated its security products with Microsoft Azure, has agreed to acquire CyberArk in a definitive cash-and-stock transaction valued at roughly $25 billion.
The boards of both companies have unanimously approved the agreement, which is expected to close in the second half of Palo Alto's fiscal 2026, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals.
CyberArk's privileged access and identity security platform will be integrated into Palo Alto's Strata and Cortex offerings, enabling AI‑powered identity‑aware protections and just‑in‑time access controls for both human and machine identities.
Increasing enterprise use of agentic AI has amplified the need for robust identity and credential‑management tools. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives called the move a "strategic home run," positioning Palo Alto as a full‑stack provider better suited to address AI‑driven threat environments. Palo Alto shares fell by nearly 8 percent on the announcement, underscoring investor caution over the sizable deal, while CyberArk stock saw modest gains followed by a pullback.
This follows Palo Alto's April 2025 acquisition of Protect AI, intended to protect applications and ML models across the AI lifecycle.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on July 30, 2025