Symantec (SYMC) Competitors

Symantec (NASDAQ:SYMC) and Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and risk.

Which has higher valuation and earnings, SYMC or FTNT?

Fortinet has higher revenue and earnings than Symantec. Symantec is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fortinet, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Symantec	$4.73B	3.53	$31M	$1.17	23.11
Fortinet	$6.34B	10.10	$1.75B	$2.51	33.28

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of SYMC or FTNT?

90.3% of Symantec shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.7% of Fortinet shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Symantec shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.2% of Fortinet shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media prefer SYMC or FTNT?

In the previous week, Fortinet had 55 more articles in the media than Symantec. MarketBeat recorded 55 mentions for Fortinet and 0 mentions for Symantec. Fortinet's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Symantec's score of 0.00 indicating that Fortinet is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Symantec	Neutral
Fortinet	Positive

Do analysts rate SYMC or FTNT?

Fortinet has a consensus price target of $97.03, suggesting a potential upside of 16.17%. Given Fortinet's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Fortinet is more favorable than Symantec.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Symantec	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00
Fortinet	2 Sell rating(s)	26 Hold rating(s)	8 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.26

Which has more risk and volatility, SYMC or FTNT?

Symantec has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fortinet has a beta of 1.09, suggesting that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is SYMC or FTNT more profitable?

Fortinet has a net margin of 30.60% compared to Symantec's net margin of 2.43%. Fortinet's return on equity of 111.46% beat Symantec's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Symantec	2.43%	14.94%	5.33%
Fortinet	30.60%	111.46%	18.06%

Summary

Fortinet beats Symantec on 15 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.