Argent Capital Management LLC Sells 25,877 Shares of Fortinet, Inc. $FTNT

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management reduced its Fortinet position by 4.4%, selling 25,877 shares and retaining 560,811 shares valued at approximately $45.8 million. Fortinet represents about 1.4% of Argent’s portfolio.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 83.71%, with several major investors—including Arrowstreet, First Trust, Van ECK and AQR—substantially increasing their stakes.
• Fortinet reported quarterly EPS of $0.90 and revenue of $2.05 billion, beating estimates and delivering 25.6% year-over-year revenue growth. Despite bullish analyst target increases, the stock carries a consensus “Hold” rating and trades at roughly 57 times earnings, highlighting valuation concerns.

Argent Capital Management LLC cut its position in Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 560,811 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 25,877 shares during the quarter. Fortinet comprises about 1.4% of Argent Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Fortinet worth $45,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Fortinet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,152,917,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Fortinet by 87.4% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 9,651,024 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $788,682,000 after buying an additional 4,500,194 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Fortinet by 45.5% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 11,506,173 shares of the software maker's stock worth $940,284,000 after buying an additional 3,598,487 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Fortinet by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,730,954 shares of the software maker's stock worth $613,915,000 after acquiring an additional 2,166,396 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Fortinet by 76.2% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,109,016 shares of the software maker's stock worth $326,297,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777,115 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FTNT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Fortinet in a research report on Thursday. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Fortinet in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Zacks Research raised Fortinet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Arete Research set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Fortinet and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on shares of Fortinet from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.91.

Fortinet Stock Performance

Shares of Fortinet stock opened at $161.95 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $118.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 1.09. Fortinet, Inc. has a twelve month low of $70.12 and a twelve month high of $170.35. The company's fifty day moving average is $150.50 and its 200 day moving average is $109.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software maker reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.15. Fortinet had a return on equity of 191.54% and a net margin of 28.17%.The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 25.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Fortinet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.410-3.470 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.830-0.870 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fortinet, Inc. will post 2.82 EPS for the current year.

Key Fortinet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong Q2 results: Fortinet reported earnings of $0.90 per share versus the $0.75 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 25.6% year over year to $2.05 billion, above the $1.89 billion forecast. Product revenue reportedly increased 52%, and billings climbed 33% to $2.37 billion. Fortinet lifts annual revenue forecast on strong cybersecurity demand
• Positive Sentiment: Guidance raised: Management lifted its full-year 2026 revenue outlook, signaling confidence that enterprise spending on security will remain strong amid rising data-security incidents. Analysts also highlighted pricing strength and solid execution. Fortinet raises revenue outlook after strong Q2 and new AI product push
• Positive Sentiment: AI and platform momentum: Demand for Fortinet’s AI-security offerings, SASE Firewall, security platforms and operational-technology products is providing additional growth catalysts as companies expand AI infrastructure. FTNT Q2 earnings call highlights SASE Firewall growth
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target increases: Rosenblatt raised its target to $195 and BTIG raised its target to $203, both with Buy ratings. Citigroup also increased its target to $185, reinforcing the favorable near-term reaction to the earnings report. Analysts boost forecasts following upbeat Q2 earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its target to $160 but retained a Neutral rating, while William Blair maintained a Hold rating, citing questions about how durable Fortinet’s pricing and growth advantages will be.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a risk after the stock’s substantial multiyear gain. At roughly 57 times earnings, shares may already reflect considerable optimism, leaving less room for disappointment. Fortinet stock seems stretched following its five-year run

Insider Buying and Selling at Fortinet

In other news, CEO Ken Xie sold 160,632 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.58, for a total value of $23,384,806.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 52,972,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,711,717,915.76. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO John Whittle sold 146,015 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.41, for a total transaction of $18,749,786.15. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 94,724 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,163,508.84. This trade represents a 60.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 318,387 shares of company stock valued at $43,403,063. 17.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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