Fortinet (FTNT) closed at $366 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.45% move from the prior day. This change lagged the S&P 500’s 0.1% loss on the day. At the same time, the Dow added 0.26%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.1%.
Prior to today’s trading, shares of the network security company had gained 7.1% over the past month. This has outpaced the Computer and Technology sector’s gain of 3.66% and the S&P 500’s gain of 4.4% in that time.
Fortinet will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Fortinet to post earnings of $1.14 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 7.55%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $960.88 million, up 28.46% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.89 per share and revenue of $3.34 billion. These totals would mark changes of +16.12% and +28.88%, respectively, from last year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Fortinet. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company’s business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. Fortinet is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, Fortinet is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 94.5. This represents a premium compared to its industry’s average Forward P/E of 78.49.
Investors should also note that FTNT has a PEG ratio of 6.3 right now. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock’s expected earnings growth rate. The Security industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 5.07 as of yesterday’s close.
The Security industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 167, which puts it in the bottom 35% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
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