Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The software maker reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. Fortinet had a net margin of 28.58% and a return on equity of 118.27%. Fortinet updated its Q1 2026 guidance to 0.590-0.630 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance to 2.940-3.000 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Fortinet’s conference call:

• Fortinet reported a strong quarter and year: Q4 billings +18%, revenue +15%, product revenue +20%, operating margin ~37%, record free cash flow of $2.21B for 2025 and an expanded $1.4B repurchase authorization remaining.
• Unified SASE is a major growth driver—billings +40%, FortiSASE ARR up >90%, now 27% of billings—supported by FortiOS single‑OS integration, sovereign SASE positioning, and FortiCloud cost advantage that management says widens total addressable market.
• Product refresh, AI and OT demand fueled product revenue (20% YoY) and notable large deals—OT billings +25% and AI/SecOps ARR +21%—plus strategic partnerships (e.g., NVIDIA BlueField‑3) to secure AI infrastructure.
• Management reaffirmed midterm targets and 2026 guidance (2026 billings $8.4–$8.6B, revenue $7.5–$7.7B), expects to sustain 10–15% midterm product growth and continue delivering the “Rule of 45,” while investing $350–$450M in infrastructure.
• Supply‑chain and cost pressures remain a risk: memory exposure (estimated ~10–20% of BOM) prompted planned appliance price increases of roughly 5–20% in affected SKUs, and FX could create modest headwinds to near‑term results.

Fortinet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FTNT traded down $2.19 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $78.93. The company had a trading volume of 12,671,872 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,860,309. Fortinet has a 1-year low of $70.12 and a 1-year high of $114.82. The firm has a market cap of $58.70 billion, a PE ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $80.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Fortinet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Raised FY‑2026 guidance: management raised full‑year EPS to $2.94–$3.00 vs. consensus ~2.79 and guided revenue to $7.5B–$7.7B, which signals confidence in recurring revenue and deals. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat: EPS $0.81 vs. $0.74 est and revenue $1.91B vs. $1.86B est; strong billings growth (18%) and unified SASE billings +40% highlight healthy product/recurring mix and margin expansion. FinancialPost: Q4 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1‑2026 guide: EPS $0.59–$0.63 (consensus ~0.62) and revenue $1.7B–$1.8B — guidance broadly in line but slightly wide, so execution on Q1 bookings/billings will be watched. Slide Deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Broker tone mixed: Jefferies flagged a modest Q4 beat but remained cautious on 2026, underlining that upside will depend on large AI/data‑center deals and execution. Yahoo/Jefferies
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CEO Ken Xie sold 175,737 shares and VP Michael Xie sold 343,106 shares (~$14.3M and ~$27.9M respectively), which can weigh on sentiment despite their remaining large holdings. Ken Xie SEC Filing Michael Xie SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and reassessments of 2026 growth (including Scotiabank/others) have trimmed appetite for FTNT, prompting some near‑term selling. Analyst Reassessment
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage notes the stock slipped after downgrades, showing sentiment can outweigh fundamentals in the near term. Seeking Alpha: Slip After Downgrade

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FTNT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $87.00 target price on shares of Fortinet in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Fortinet from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Fortinet from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Fortinet from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortinet in a report on Friday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $90.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Michael Xie sold 343,106 shares of Fortinet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total transaction of $27,935,690.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 10,210,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $831,321,160.44. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction 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 approximately $4,184,693,666.70. This represents a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 17.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fortinet

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,349,000. Keystone Financial Group purchased a new position in Fortinet during the third quarter worth approximately $165,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fortinet in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Fortinet by 12.8% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,088,545 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $175,605,000 after buying an additional 237,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fortinet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $443,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fortinet Company Profile

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.