Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP) said its softer first-quarter outlook was tied to internal sales execution issues rather than broad macroeconomic pressure, according to Kip Meintzer, the company’s global head of investor relations, speaking at a TD Cowen event hosted by analyst Shaul Eyal.
Meintzer said the company “owned” the first-quarter shortfall, attributing it to a go-to-market transition that took longer than expected to implement. He said the company did not see a macro impact in the quarter, though he acknowledged external factors including rising memory costs and demand tied to artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Sales Reorganization Focuses on U.S. Enterprise Opportunity
Meintzer said the most pronounced change in Check Point’s sales organization is the leadership of Chief Revenue Officer Sherif Seddik, who has been with the company for three years and is overseeing the new go-to-market structure.
The transition included reducing the number of accounts assigned to each sales or account manager and adding dedicated “hunters” focused on new logos. Previously, account managers were responsible both for existing account coverage and new customer acquisition.
Under the revised model, Meintzer said account managers are more focused on cross-selling and upselling into a smaller number of accounts. The mid-market is now being addressed through inside sales and the channel, while enterprise sales are led by account managers.
Meintzer said the U.S. is the market where Check Point sees the largest untapped opportunity and where the go-to-market changes are most targeted. He said Europe remains strong for the company, while Asia also continues to perform well.
Hardware Pipeline Improves, but Conversion Remains Key
Check Point’s first-quarter disappointment was concentrated on the product and hardware side, Meintzer said, while “unattached subscription” areas remained healthy. He said the company did not change guidance for those subscription areas or cash flow, with the revenue revision driven specifically by product weakness.
Meintzer said the company has seen a stronger product pipeline in April and May compared with the same period last year, particularly in hardware. However, he emphasized that converting that pipeline into deals remains the key issue for the remainder of the year.
“Where we were from a year ago compared to where we are now, we’re ahead. Now it’s about conversion,” Meintzer said.
He also said Check Point added a 5% surcharge on hardware beginning April 1 in response to rising bill-of-materials costs, including memory.
AI, Data Centers and Product Pillars
Meintzer said AI is emerging as a driver for Check Point’s business, including some “AI factory” wins, and that the company is seeing pipeline build across product areas for the second half of the year. He identified data centers as a major area of business for Check Point, given the company’s position in network security.
He said Check Point continues to invest in its strategic pillars, including Workspace, continuous threat exposure management, or CTEM, and AI. On AI internally, Meintzer said employees have access to chat tools integrated with workplace systems, while developers are using coding tools that are already providing benefits.
He also said Check Point uses its own small language model built on more than 32 years of telemetry data. On the customer side, Meintzer said AI is a major topic in security operations and highlighted automation and “agentic protections” as areas where Check Point has recently made announcements.
Meintzer said the company remains open to acquisitions, both small and large, if the technology fits its strategy and can be cross-sold effectively. He referenced a recent small startup acquisition that he described primarily as an acqui-hire tied to the company’s AI pillar, but did not name the company.
Capital Allocation and Federal Market
Asked about Check Point’s recently announced $2 billion buyback authorization, Meintzer said the company had remaining capacity under its prior authorization and investors may see another $325 million tied to that prior plan. Going forward, he said the new authorization intentionally does not include a stated cap or committed quarterly level.
“We will basically be opportunistic,” Meintzer said, adding that buyback activity will depend on factors such as share price.
Meintzer also discussed the company’s $2 billion zero-coupon convertible bond issuance from late last year, saying it strengthened Check Point’s ability to pursue larger opportunities. He said the transaction was attractive because of its zero-coupon structure and could support future strategic activity.
On the government market, Meintzer said Check Point has a dedicated federal and government team and has become more active after receiving authorizations for its Infinity Platform, including FedRAMP-related certifications. He said the company historically had not played heavily in federal markets, but sees opportunity following the authorizations.
SASE Roadmap and Pricing Models
Looking ahead, Meintzer said Check Point’s SASE offering should continue improving and that the company expects to reach the level needed to serve its largest customers over the next 12 to 18 months.
He also addressed the industry debate over seat-based versus consumption- or value-based pricing as AI agents become more widely used. Meintzer said pricing is likely to remain a “work in progress” and should reflect value delivered rather than simply counting seats.
In closing, Meintzer said the company began the year in a difficult position due to the go-to-market transition but expects momentum to build as sales employees become more established in their roles.
About Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP)
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. is an Israeli-founded cybersecurity company that develops, markets and supports a broad portfolio of network, cloud and endpoint security products. Founded in 1993, the company was an early pioneer of stateful inspection firewall technology and later developed a modular “software blade” approach that allowed customers to combine protection capabilities. Check Point’s product set spans physical and virtual security appliances, software and cloud-native services designed to prevent cyberattacks, protect data and simplify security management for enterprises and service providers.
Key product families include Quantum Security Gateways (on-premises and hybrid appliances), CloudGuard (cloud security posture and workload protection), Harmony (endpoint, remote access and unified endpoint security), and SandBlast (advanced threat prevention and sandboxing).
