Fortinet Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

Valued at a market cap of $79.7 billion, Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT) provides cybersecurity and convergence of networking and security solutions to enterprises, service providers, and government entities. The Sunnyvale, California-based company’s offerings span network security, cloud protection, endpoint security, SASE, zero trust access, and security operations. Shares of this software company have considerably outpaced the broader market over the past 52 weeks. Fortinet has rallied 64% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has gained 11.7%. Moreover, on a YTD basis, the stock is up 10.3%, compared to SPX’s 4.7% downtick. Zooming in further, Fortinet has also significantly outperformed the Xtrackers Cybersecurity Select Equity ETF’s (PSWD) 15% uptick over the past 52 weeks and 2.7% rise on a YTD basis. www.barchart.com FTNT’s shares surged 2.8% on the following day after its better-than-expected Q4 earnings release on Feb. 6. The company delivered revenue of $1.7 billion, up 17.3% from the year-ago quarter and 4.4% above the consensus estimates. Moreover, its adjusted EPS of $0.74 grew by an impressive 45.1% from the same quarter last year and exceeded the forecasted figure by 23.3%. The robust performance was driven by strong growth in both service and product revenues, as well as a notable 720 basis point improvement in its adjusted operating margin, which reached a record high of 39.2%.Looking ahead to fiscal 2025, Fortinet expects to generate revenue between $6.7 billion and $6.9 billion, and anticipates adjusted EPS in the range of $2.41 to $2.47.For fiscal 2025, ending in December, analysts expect Fortinet’s EPS to grow 1% year over year to $2.11. The company’s earnings surprise history is promising. It exceeded the consensus estimates in each of the last four quarters. Among the 40 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy” which is based on 13 “Strong Buy,” 25 “Hold,” and two “Strong Sell” ratings. www.barchart.com This configuration is less bullish than three months ago, with 14 analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy” rating, and one advising a “Strong Sell.” On Apr. 24, Cantor Fitzgerald maintained a “Neutral” rating on FTNT but lowered its price target to $100.The mean price target of $111.29 represents a 6.8% upside from Fortinet’s current price levels, while the Street-high price target of $135 suggests an upside potential of 29.5%. On the date of publication, Neharika Jain did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.