Try your own numbers
it would be worth today
$18,310
+$17,310 profit18.3x34.8% a year
The same $1,000 in an S&P 500 index fund: $4,022
Aftertax on the gain, you’d keep$15,713
US federal long-term rates: 15% for most people, 0% on lower incomes, 20% + 3.8% on high incomes. No state tax included; none inside a Roth IRA.
Growth Over Time
Performance Metrics
Total Invested
$1,000.00
Current Value
$18,309.55
Total Profit
$17,309.55
Multiplier
18.3x
CAGR
34.8%
Max Drawdown
-34.1%
Inflation-Adjusted
$13,765.86
Benchmark Comparison
How does $1,000.00 invested in 2017 compare across different asset classes?
| Asset | Value Today | Return |
|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto Networks | $18,309.55 | 18.3x |
| S&P 500 | $4,022.42 | 4.02x |
| Gold | $3,650.04 | 3.65x |
| Savings (2% APY) | $1,212.82 | 1.21x |
Dividends
Palo Alto Networks paid no dividends over this period, so the whole return came from its share price.
Dividends from Yahoo Finance. Shares today assume every dividend was reinvested.
Back in 2017
- In August 2017, Palo Alto Networks reported adding a record number of customers in the wake of that year's global ransomware attack. fortune.com
- In 2017, a gallon of gas averaged $2.42, a movie ticket averaged $8.97 and the new iPhone X started at $999. eia.govapple.comdeadline.com
- During 2017 itself, Palo Alto Networks rose 17%, #61 of the 87 investments we track. The best was XRP (+36,408%); the worst was AMC Entertainment (−54%). Full 2017 results →
$1,000 in Palo Alto Networks, year by year
Of the 87 investments we track that were available at the start of 2017, Palo Alto Networks ranks #12 by growth to today — just behind Eli Lilly and ahead of ASML. See the full 2017 ranking →
Palo Alto Networks started 2017 26% below its start-of-2016 high, after falling 26% in 2016. It has been worth more than the $1,000 put in at every January since, and still is today. Today's $18,310 is more than it was worth at any January since. It rose in 7 of the 9 full years since. It moved ahead of the same $1,000 in the S&P 500 at the start of 2019 and has stayed ahead since. Month by month, the deepest fall ran from Apr 2019 ($1,958) to Mar 2020 ($1,290), a drop of 34%. At its lowest month-end, in Apr 2017, it was worth $853.10.
| When | Worth | Change | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start of 2017 | $1,000 | — | $1,000 |
| Start of 2018 | $1,170 | +17% | $1,218 |
| Start of 2019 | $1,443 | +23% | $1,165 |
| Start of 2020 | $1,854 | +29% | $1,532 |
| Start of 2021 | $2,770 | +49% | $1,814 |
| Start of 2022 | $4,286 | +55% | $2,334 |
| Start of 2023 | $3,271 | −24% | $1,911 |
| Start of 2024 | $6,827 | +109% | $2,414 |
| Start of 2025 | $8,542 | +25% | $3,018 |
| Start of 2026 | $8,477 | −0.8% | $3,557 |
| Today | $18,310 | +116% | $4,022 |
Values at the start of each year (first trading day for stocks). The S&P 500 column includes reinvested dividends, like the stock values.
Historical Context
At the start of 2017, Palo Alto Networks was priced at $21.16 (adjusted for later splits and dividends). $1,000 would have bought about 47.26 shares. Palo Alto Networks sells cybersecurity products. It went public in July 2012.
Measured from one January to the next, Palo Alto Networks's best year since then was 2023 (+109%) and its worst was 2022 (−24%). Holding on wasn't easy: between the start of 2022 and the start of 2023, the position fell 24% from its high.
Frequently Asked Questions
A $1,000 investment in Palo Alto Networks at the start of 2017 would be worth approximately $18,309.55 today — a 18.3x return ($17,309.55 profit) over 9.7 years.
Methodology & Sources
Price data: Historical prices are the closing price on the first trading day of each year, adjusted for splits and dividends (so returns assume dividends were reinvested), from Yahoo Finance and MacroTrends. Current prices come from Yahoo Finance and refresh hourly; if that source is unavailable, the last saved price is used.
Calculation: Assumes a single purchase at the start of 2017 (or the first trading day, for companies that listed that year), held until today. No transaction fees, taxes, or slippage are included.
Benchmarks: The S&P 500 comparison uses the S&P 500 Total Return index (dividends reinvested, like an index fund) at the start of2017 and today. Gold uses the price per troy ounce. Savings account assumes a 2% APY compounded annually.
Inflation adjustment: Uses U.S. CPI-U annual averages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2026 CPI value is estimated.
Educational purposes only. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Not financial advice.
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$1,000 in Palo Alto Networks, by year
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