Key Points
- Ken Xie sold 175,737 Fortinet shares on Feb. 2 at an average of $81.42 for about $14.31M, leaving him with 51,396,385 shares (a 0.34% reduction) valued at roughly $4.18B.
- Other insiders also sold recently (VP Michael Xie sold 343,106 shares, ~$27.9M), and these large insider sales have weighed on sentiment despite insiders retaining sizeable positions.
- Fortinet has a market cap of about $58.97B, a P/E of 32.6, a 52‑week range of $70.12–$114.82, and a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $90.48.
Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT - Get Free Report) CEO Ken Xie sold 175,737 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total value of $14,308,506.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,396,385 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,184,693,666.70. This trade represents a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.
Fortinet Price Performance
FTNT stock opened at $79.30 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Fortinet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $70.12 and a 52-week high of $114.82. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $80.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.09.
Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The software maker reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.11. Fortinet had a return on equity of 118.27% and a net margin of 28.58%.The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Fortinet, Inc. will post 2.09 EPS for the current year.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fortinet
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Fortinet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new stake in Fortinet in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company's stock.
Key Stories Impacting Fortinet
Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt flagged potential Q4 upside from tax incentives and improved sales execution, suggesting earnings could beat expectations and provide support. Rosenblatt Q4 Upside
- Positive Sentiment: Market coverage noting Fortinet’s upgrade and resilient ARR growth as signs that the cybersecurity group may be finding support ahead of earnings — a constructive signal for investors focused on recurring revenue and AI-related deals. MarketBeat: CrowdStrike & Fortinet Context
- Neutral Sentiment: Zacks previews Q4 and highlights expected revenue guidance of $1.825–$1.885B and steady EPS, noting AI data-center deals could shape results — useful context but not a direct catalyst until results/guidance are confirmed. Zacks Q4 Preview
- Neutral Sentiment: Another Zacks piece compiles Wall Street estimates for key metrics ahead of the quarter — important for positioning but not an immediate price driver. Zacks Estimates
- Neutral Sentiment: The published short-interest data is effectively zero/ambiguous and does not appear to be a meaningful near-term pressure point. (No actionable short squeeze signal.)
- Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: VP Michael Xie sold 343,106 shares (~$27.9M at ~$81.42) and CEO Ken Xie sold 175,737 shares (~$14.3M), reducing their holdings modestly — large insider sales often weigh on sentiment even when insiders retain sizeable positions. Michael Xie SEC Filing Ken Xie SEC Filing
- Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and reassessments of 2026 growth (including a Scotiabank downgrade) have pressured shares as investors mark down forward growth expectations; coverage notes led to a near-term slip in the stock. Scotiabank Downgrade Analyst Reassessment
- Negative Sentiment: Market write-ups (e.g., Seeking Alpha) note the stock slipped after the Scotiabank downgrade, reflecting immediate market reaction to the weaker outlook. Seeking Alpha: Slip After Downgrade
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays set a $88.00 target price on shares of Fortinet in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen raised shares of Fortinet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 price objective (up from $85.00) on shares of Fortinet in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fortinet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $88.00 price target on Fortinet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $90.48.
Get Our Latest Research Report on FTNT
About Fortinet
(
Get Free Report)
Fortinet, Inc (NASDAQ: FTNT) is a multinational cybersecurity company that develops and delivers integrated security solutions for enterprise, service provider and government customers worldwide. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, the company was co‑founded by Ken Xie and Michael Xie. Ken Xie serves as chairman and chief executive officer, and the company operates through a global sales, channel and services organization to support customers across the Americas, EMEA and Asia‑Pacific.
Fortinet's product portfolio centers on network security appliances and software, with its FortiGate next‑generation firewalls and the FortiOS operating system forming a core platform.
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