North Dakota State Investment Board Makes New Investment in Fortinet, Inc. $FTNT

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Fortinet, buying 21,808 shares worth about $1.73 million in the fourth quarter.
• Fortinet has seen mixed Wall Street sentiment: several firms raised price targets or upgraded the stock, but the overall consensus remains Hold with an average target of $101.83.
• The company reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $0.82 beating estimates and revenue of $1.85 billion topping forecasts, while management also lifted guidance amid accelerating AI-related security demand.

North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 21,808 shares of the software maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,732,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in Fortinet during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Fortinet during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new position in Fortinet during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Fortinet during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Fortinet during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors own 83.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FTNT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $107.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of Fortinet in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Fortinet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Fortinet in a report on Friday, February 6th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Fortinet in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Fortinet from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $101.83.

Insider Activity at Fortinet

In other Fortinet news, CEO Ken Xie sold 5,355 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.90, for a total value of $476,059.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 52,978,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,709,744,555.60. The trade was a 0.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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, VP Michael Xie sold 2,478 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.89, for a total value of $220,269.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 9,927,517 shares in the company, valued at $882,456,986.13. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. Insiders own 17.60% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Fortinet

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortinet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fortinet said AI-related security demand is accelerating, which is supporting stronger sales momentum and leading management to lift guidance. Fortinet Rides AI-Led Surge to Lift Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary continues to frame FTNT as a strong momentum name, citing billings growth, margin strength, and favorable estimate revisions tied to AI and SASE demand. Here's Why Fortinet (FTNT) is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Another bullish note argues Fortinet looks like the better cybersecurity buy versus Zscaler because of AI and SASE tailwinds and ongoing demand strength. Zscaler vs. Fortinet: Which Cybersecurity Stock Is the Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Fortinet also presented at J.P. Morgan’s Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference, which may have helped reinforce its growth story but did not include a clearly new catalyst. Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT) Presents at J.P. Morgan 54th Annual Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: DZ Bank downgraded Fortinet from Buy to Hold and set a $125 price target, signaling some caution on valuation and contributing pressure on the shares. Finviz report

Fortinet Trading Up 0.9%

NASDAQ:FTNT opened at $127.64 on Wednesday. Fortinet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.12 and a fifty-two week high of $128.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.52 billion, a PE ratio of 49.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.92. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $89.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.95.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The software maker reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.73 billion. Fortinet had a return on equity of 160.08% and a net margin of 27.49%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.58 EPS. Fortinet has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.720-0.760 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.160 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Fortinet, Inc. will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortinet Company Profile

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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