Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 3.100-3.160 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 2.910. The company issued revenue guidance of $7.7 billion-$7.9 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $7.6 billion. Fortinet also updated its Q2 2026 guidance to 0.720-0.760 EPS.

Fortinet Stock Up 23.5%

Shares of NASDAQ FTNT opened at $111.13 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $81.36 billion, a PE ratio of 45.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.81. Fortinet has a 12-month low of $70.12 and a 12-month high of $110.76.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The software maker reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.73 billion. Fortinet had a net margin of 27.26% and a return on equity of 124.21%. The business’s revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. Fortinet has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.720-0.760 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.160 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fortinet will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on FTNT shares. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Fortinet in a report on Friday, February 6th. Evercore set a $80.00 price target on shares of Fortinet in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Fortinet in a research note on Friday, February 6th. BTIG Research raised shares of Fortinet from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up from $85.00) on shares of Fortinet in a report on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fortinet has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.89.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fortinet

In other Fortinet news, VP Michael Xie sold 2,478 shares of Fortinet stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.89, for a total transaction of $220,269.42. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 9,927,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $882,456,986.13. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Ken Xie sold 5,355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.90, for a total transaction of $476,059.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 52,978,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,709,744,555.60. The trade was a 0.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 17.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fortinet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Beat‑and‑raise quarter: Q1 revenue $1.85B (+20.1% YoY), non‑GAAP EPS $0.82 vs. consensus ~ $0.62, billings +31% and product revenue +41%; company raised Q2 and FY26 guidance, supporting near‑term upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction — several outlets report the stock jumping in after‑hours/premarket (double‑digit moves on the beats) and Wall Street commentaries lifting targets and sentiment. Momentum from the beat is drawing buy‑side attention. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: AI/security product tailwind — Fortinet expanded its FortiGate G series (ASIC‑accelerated, AI‑focused data‑center/edge appliances), reinforcing the company’s positioning to capture AI‑driven security spend. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price target increases from some shops (BTIG, BMO and others highlighted bullish scenarios, with some targets well above current levels), which can extend buying interest. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market context is mildly supportive (equity futures and low VIX), which may amplify how earnings flows into sector leaders like Fortinet but isn’t company‑specific. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts remain cautious on valuation despite the beat (several Hold/Neutral calls were reiterated), so follow‑through depends on execution against raised targets. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider sales disclosed (Ken Xie, Michael Xie) were executed under Rule 10b5‑1 plans to cover taxes on vested awards; routine but worth noting for those tracking insider flows. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Some firms issued cautious/underperform views (e.g., Mizuho kept an underperform stance despite a raised target), highlighting downside risk if growth or margin momentum fades relative to current valuation. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Background trimming by some institutional holders and a meaningful proportion of analysts rated Hold — this can cap upside if the stock needs a broader base of conviction beyond near‑term earnings beats. Read More.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fortinet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fortinet in the fourth quarter valued at $585,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Fortinet by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,327 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $976,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in Fortinet by 5,512.9% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 1,740 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 1,709 shares during the last quarter. Intesa Sanpaolo Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Fortinet in the 4th quarter worth about $119,000. Finally, Keystone Financial Group bought a new stake in Fortinet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $165,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

About Fortinet

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.