Fortinet, Inc. $FTNT Stock Purchased by Brookstone Capital Management

Key Points

• Brookstone Capital Management more than doubled its Fortinet position in the third quarter, adding 7,400 shares to hold 14,647 shares valued at approximately $2.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.71% of the company.
• Fortinet reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.90 versus a $0.75 consensus estimate and revenue of $2.05 billion, up 25.6% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $162.36, below its reported $179.99 opening price, while elevated valuation and recent insider selling remain concerns.

Brookstone Capital Management raised its holdings in Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT - Free Report) by 102.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,647 shares of the software maker's stock after acquiring an additional 7,400 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management's holdings in Fortinet were worth $2,618,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cadinha & Co. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the 3rd quarter valued at $215,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Fortinet by 19.8% in the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 4,911 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. bought a new position in Fortinet in the third quarter valued at $195,000. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC bought a new position in Fortinet in the third quarter valued at $262,000. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fortinet during the third quarter valued at about $246,000. Institutional investors own 83.71% of the company's stock.

Fortinet Price Performance

Shares of Fortinet stock opened at $179.99 on Monday. Fortinet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.55 and a 52-week high of $197.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a fifty day moving average of $170.47 and a 200-day moving average of $146.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software maker reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. Fortinet had a net margin of 28.17% and a return on equity of 191.54%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 25.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Fortinet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.410-3.470 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.830-0.870 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Fortinet, Inc. will post 3.10 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Fortinet

In related news, COO John Whittle sold 53,865 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.44, for a total transaction of $8,911,425.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 96,987 shares in the company, valued at $16,045,529.28. This represents a 35.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Michael Xie sold 3,121 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.63, for a total value of $507,568.23. Following the sale, the vice president owned 9,918,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,613,022,886.80. This represents a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 221,303 shares of company stock worth $36,164,034. Company insiders own 17.60% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Fortinet

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies expects Fortinet’s third-quarter product revenue growth to reach roughly 50% year over year, well above the 31% consensus forecast. The broker cited favorable industry checks, price increases and accelerated firewall replacement activity. Fortinet growth outlook for 2027 becomes key test for investors, says Jefferies
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are looking for another strong quarterly result, with analysts expecting double-digit year-over-year EPS growth. Fortinet’s ability to sustain product growth into fiscal 2027 will be the central focus of the earnings outlook. What to Expect From Fortinet’s Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Recent bullish positioning, including a previously raised $200 price target, reflects expectations for continued cybersecurity spending and AI-related demand. Fortinet’s hardware-software combination was also highlighted as a potential long-term competitive advantage. Fortinet versus Cisco and Palo Alto Networks
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies maintained a “hold” rating, emphasizing that forward guidance for 2027 matters more than simply beating near-term estimates. Fortinet trades at a premium valuation, increasing the importance of durable growth and strong cash generation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Fortinet released coordinated security-hardening updates for multiple products, which may have improved sentiment amid broader cybersecurity concerns, although the updates are not a major direct earnings catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target from $118 to $140 but retained an “underweight” rating, implying substantial downside from recent trading levels. JPMorgan Fortinet rating
• Negative Sentiment: Arete Research reportedly downgraded Fortinet to “sell,” adding to concerns that the stock’s elevated valuation already discounts much of its expected growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity shows executives made no open-market purchases and sold shares during the past six months, a potentially cautionary signal, though such sales may reflect scheduled diversification.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on FTNT. Stephens lifted their price target on Fortinet from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $175.00 price objective (up from $110.00) on shares of Fortinet in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Fortinet from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Fortinet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Fortinet from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $162.36.

About Fortinet

Fortinet, Inc develops cybersecurity products and services designed to protect networks, endpoints, applications, cloud environments and operational technology systems. The company's portfolio includes next-generation firewalls, secure networking products, endpoint security, web application security, email security, identity and access solutions, and security information and event management tools.

Its product offerings include FortiGate network security appliances and cloud-based firewalls, along with FortiSwitch, FortiAP and FortiExtender solutions for secure connectivity.

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