CRWD

CrowdStrike Holdings (NASDAQ:CRWD) had what management called the best quarter in its history in fiscal Q2 2027. It added a record $332.8 million in net new annual recurring revenue, and that figure grew 51% year over year. Yet GAAP net income came to just $5.3 million on $1.47 billion in revenue. That gap sits at the heart of the story. CrowdStrike sells cybersecurity through its cloud-based Falcon platform, which protects laptops, servers, cloud workloads, and user identities from attackers. Customers pay subscriptions, often for several modules at once, so revenue recurs and stacks up over time. The stock has rallied hard this year as AI-driven security fears pulled investors into the sector. Whether that rally has outrun the business depends less on the record quarter than on what's powering it, and how long it can last. CrowdStrike's edge starts with a single lightweight agent (software installed on each device) feeding one platform. Once it's in place, adding another module is easy, and ripping out the whole system is painful. The adoption data shows that lock-in at work. As of the end of the quarter, 51% of subscription customers used six or more modules, 35% used seven or more, and 26% used eight or more. Falcon Flex pushes this further. It's a licensing model that lets customers draw from a pool of CrowdStrike products and swap between them as needs change. Ending ARR from accounts that adopted Flex topped $2.29 billion, with growth accelerating to 101% year over year. Bundling like this is how platforms squeeze out single-product vendors, a pressure smaller endpoint security rivals are already feeling. Total revenue rose 26% year over year, subscription revenue climbed 27%, and total ARR grew 25% to $5.84 billion. CFO Burt Podbere said dollar-based gross and net retention both improved, a sign existing customers are staying and spending more. Management lifted its full-year outlook for net new ARR growth by 630 basis points to 34% at the midpoint. It now guides fiscal 2027 revenue to between $5,991.1 million and $6,011.1 million. CEO George Kurtz ties the surge to AI, arguing that securing AI across every enterprise is the largest opportunity the company has ever had. The product pipeline backs that up, from new identity protections for AI agents to AI detection and response tools extended across gateway partners like Databricks, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. Needham analyst Mike Cikos recently reiterated his bullish view, built largely around Falcon Flex. It all places CrowdStrike firmly among 11 Best Agentic AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. The sharpest pushback is about cause, not quality. CrowdStrike's 2024 outage, triggered by a faulty update that crashed Windows machines worldwide, weighed on growth afterward. Skeptics argue much of today's acceleration is the business climbing out of that hole, not a lasting AI-driven step up. Strong growth against softened year-ago numbers can flatter the trend. Profitability is the second pressure point. Stock-based compensation and related payroll taxes reached $399.0 million in the quarter. That's why $371.6 million of non-GAAP operating income turns into a $33.2 million GAAP operating loss. Cash flow looks healthy partly because that expense isn't paid in cash. Still, the objection doesn't fully explain the guidance raise. A rebound alone wouldn't push Flex ARR growth to 101%, and that newer engine is doing real work. CrowdStrike trades at 218.97 times forward earnings, as of October 9, against a sector average of 23.35. The more telling comparison is its own five-year average of 132.44, which shows today's multiple is a big step up even from a history of paying up. Growth helps, but it doesn't close that gap by itself. Analysts expect earnings per share to grow 27.85% in 2028. That's a strong pace for a company this size, yet it sits far below the multiple. Put simply, you're paying today for growth several years out. Management guides full-year non-GAAP EPS of $1.25 to $1.26, while GAAP EPS in fiscal Q2 was $0.01, so the stock looks even pricier on a GAAP basis. Investors wanting security exposure at a gentler price often look at more modestly valued cybersecurity platforms; see more in our list of 10 Best Cybersecurity Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. Hedge funds have been warming to the name, with 89 funds holding the stock in the most recent quarter, up from 79 in the prior one. Short interest stands at 2.77% of the float, suggesting relatively limited bearish positioning. CrowdStrike's business is clearly getting stronger: faster ARR growth, deeper module adoption, and a Flex model that more than doubled. But at nearly 219 times expected earnings, well above its own five-year norm, the stock already prices in a long AI-security boom. The setup suits growth investors with a high tolerance for volatility who believe the reacceleration is structural. If net new ARR growth cools sharply once the outage comparisons fade, that premium gets much harder to defend. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of CRWD as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CRWD and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: This 6.3% Dividend Yield Looks Too Good to Ignore. Is the Stock a Buy? and 10 Best 52-Week Low Technology Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.

The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who didn't). Let's take a look at how cybersecurity stocks fared in Q2, starting with CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD). Cybersecurity continues to be one of the fastest-growing segments within software for good reason. Almost every company is slowly finding itself becoming a technology company and facing rising cybersecurity risks. Businesses are accelerating adoption of cloud-based software, moving data and applications into the cloud to save costs while improving performance. This migration has opened them to a multitude of new threats, like employees accessing data via their smartphone while on an open network, or logging into a web-based interface from a laptop in a new location. The 9 cybersecurity stocks we track reported a strong Q2. As a group, revenues beat analysts' consensus estimates by 1.7% while next quarter's revenue guidance was 0.9% above. Luckily, cybersecurity stocks have performed well with share prices up 30.2% on average since the latest earnings results. Known for detecting the massive SolarWinds hack in 2020 that compromised numerous government agencies, CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) provides cloud-based cybersecurity solutions that protect endpoints, cloud workloads, identity, and data through its Falcon platform. CrowdStrike reported revenues of $1.47 billion, up 25.8% year on year. This print exceeded analysts' expectations by 2.1%. Overall, it was a strong quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts' adjusted operating income estimates and a solid beat of analysts' billings estimates. Interestingly, the stock is up 45.6% since reporting and currently trades at $275.53. Read why we think that CrowdStrike is one of the best cybersecurity stocks, our full report is free. Originally developed to address the growing complexity of IT security in the cloud era, Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) provides a cloud-based platform that helps organizations identify, manage, and protect their IT assets from cyber threats across on-premises, cloud, and mobile environments. Qualys reported revenues of $182.2 million, up 11% year on year, outperforming analysts' expectations by 2%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a solid beat of analysts' billings estimates and an impressive beat of analysts' adjusted operating income estimates. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 25.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $202.32. Is now the time to buy Qualys? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free. Built on the principle of "fighting machine with machine," SentinelOne (NYSE:S) provides an AI-powered cybersecurity platform that autonomously prevents, detects, and responds to threats across endpoints, cloud workloads, and identity systems. SentinelOne reported revenues of $292 million, up 20.6% year on year, exceeding analysts' expectations by 0.6%. Still, it was a slower quarter as it posted full-year EPS guidance missing analysts' expectations significantly and EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts' expectations significantly. SentinelOne delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates among its peers. The company added 13 enterprise customers paying more than $100,000 annually to reach a total of 1,715. Interestingly, the stock is up 15.9% since the results and currently trades at $26.33. Read our full analysis of SentinelOne's results here. Starting with the widely-used Nessus vulnerability scanner first released in 1998, Tenable (NASDAQ:TENB) provides exposure management solutions that help organizations identify, assess, and prioritize cybersecurity vulnerabilities across their IT infrastructure and cloud environments. Tenable reported revenues of $268.5 million, up 8.6% year on year. This number surpassed analysts' expectations by 1.4%. It was a strong quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts' adjusted operating income estimates and EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts' expectations. The stock is up 32.9% since reporting and currently trades at $41.85. Read our full, actionable report on Tenable here, it's free. With its name inspired by the need for quick responses to cyber threats, Rapid7 (NASDAQ:RPD) provides cybersecurity software and services that help organizations detect vulnerabilities, monitor threats, and respond to security incidents. Rapid7 reported revenues of $210.9 million, down 1.5% year on year. This print topped analysts' expectations by 1.4%. Zooming out, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also logged EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts' expectations but a significant miss of analysts' billings estimates. Rapid7 had the weakest guidance update, slowest revenue growth, and weakest full-year guidance update in the group. The stock is up 19% since reporting and currently trades at $13.82. Read our full, actionable report on Rapid7 here, it's free. Over the past year, investors have been forced to repeatedly answer the same question: what is the market's biggest risk? The answer has changed several times, and each shift has reshaped market leadership. Late in 2025 and early 2026, artificial intelligence became the market's primary uncertainty. Investors questioned whether AI would erode software pricing power and weaken competitive moats as AI made it easier to replicate once-differentiated products. By the spring, technology took a back seat to geopolitics. The U.S. conflict with Iran briefly became the market's dominant narrative, raising concerns about oil prices, inflation, and global growth. But as energy markets remained orderly and fears of a prolonged supply disruption faded, investors quickly turned their focus back to fundamentals. Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Hidden Gem Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

- Interested in Palo Alto Networks, Inc.? Here are five stocks we like better. - S&P 500 earnings growth is expected to slow in Q3, but substantial upside surprises in Q1 and Q2 leave room for another beat. - Cybersecurity stocks, including Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike, and Okta, are seeing accelerating revenue growth and rising analyst price targets as AI drives security demand. - Marvell raised long-term guidance at its Oct. 6 Investor Day, while analysts have grown increasingly bullish on Intel and AMD amid rising CPU demand for AI inference. Average S&P 500 earnings typically beat consensus in Q3, as the market has historically done. The S&P 500 tends to outperform by a modest single-digit figure, but that's not the case in 2026. Average earnings could again blow past consensus because results to date reveal a disconnect. Q1 outperformance topped about 1,500 basis points (bps), and Q2 widened the gap to roughly 2,700 bps, a trend that could continue this quarter. Consensus in early October is for a slowdown to about 29.5% growth, down from roughly 50% in Q2. Given the robust outperformance in Q1 and Q2, trends such as AI and high oil prices, and the relatively modest increase in Q3 estimates, the odds favor another beat. A move into the +50% range would require another unusually large upside surprise. → Is Synopsys Back from the Dead? EDA Leader Inks Deals With Amazon and OpenAI SaaS-Pocalypse fears, fear of AI disrupting software providers across the board, including cybersecurity stocks, were increasingly looking misplaced. The narrative in late 2026 is that AI, and more specifically agentic automation, is driving business for vendors across the board, especially for cybersecurity stocks. Agentic AI drives a sharp increase in traffic and security needs at all levels, with no aspect unimportant. This has made unified cybersecurity platforms and ecosystem partners increasingly in demand, as reflected in analysts' revisions. → Schneider Just Paid Up for PTC—Is the SaaSpocalypse Overdone? Analysts are aggressively increasing price targets for cybersecurity stocks. Companies like Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW), the industry-leading pure-play, CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD), and Okta (NASDAQ: OKTA) are seeing revenue growth accelerate, with internals pointing to momentum and potential for outperformance over the next several years. NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) is among the drivers, especially with its GPUs and industry-specific focus on security, partnering with a variety of technology providers to embed security throughout its AI ecosystem. → Delta Air Lines Faces a Fuel Crisis—But There's a Silver Lining Cybersecurity demand is broad-based across industries and verticals. PANW's CEO Nikesh Arora estimates that $1 trillion of legacy security infrastructure needs to be modernized for the AI era. Systems installed even a few years ago can't handle the speed and scale of attacks, which are lightning-fast and target every available pathway, with multiple agents often working cooperatively to exploit vulnerabilities. This sets the stage for strong, accelerating, and sustained cybersecurity demand. Marvell (NASDAQ: MRVL) raised eyebrows at its Oct. 6 Investor Day by lifting long-term guidance. The company raised guidance for its next fiscal year by 10%-20% and more aggressively raised longer-term forecasts, targeting a 4x increase over the next four years and indicating broad-based strength in its data center products. While not an increase to this quarter's estimates, it reaffirms the trends in place, including robust growth and acceleration driven by industry-wide demand. Marvell's specific strengths lie in its custom silicon and optical interconnect products. It helps clients build specialized AI factories, removing data bottlenecks so they can monetize the investment. Marvell's analyst trends are more than suggestive, with earnings estimates moving higher alongside a wave of post-Investor Day price-target increases. They've lifted the consensus, setting a high bar, but several new targets sit well above the average target. Inference reached a critical turning point this year, overtaking model building as the number one demand driver for AI infrastructure. It is expected to continue taking share over time, topping 4x the modeling demand by 2030, and this is being reflected in CPU demand. Inference, such as that driven by Meta's (NASDAQ: META) Muse personal agent, requires lots of feedback, thought processes, and loops, which require complex orchestration. CPUs provide the orchestration layer and are in high demand because they enable this large, growing market. Analysts, meanwhile, are raising their targets and expectations for companies like Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD), which command the CPU market. They cite an expanding total addressable market (TAM), sold-out capacity, and the underlying driver—an AI factory buildout. Each AI factory drives demand for numerous inference-focused facilities, underpinning demand for AI infrastructure and security across the ecosystem. Intel's analyst trends and AMD's analyst forecasts are bullish, particularly around AI-driven demand and higher revenue expectations. With AMD also expected to report its first rack-scale sales, it is positioned to lead in growth and outperformance. AMD's Helios systems are already in production, with deployments beginning in the second half of 2026. Analysts forecast only moderately high growth for AMD over the next five to six quarters, peaking in the low triple-digit range, which seems unlikely given the trends. A more likely scenario is that AMD's Helios launch triggers a wave of demand not yet priced into its stock or that of its ecosystem partners. The article "Q3 Earnings Could Blow Past Consensus—Be Ready for What Comes Next" was originally published by MarketBeat. View MarketBeat's top stocks for October 2026.

Higher borrowing costs are pressuring governments, companies, and consumers, and the UN is warning that expensive debt is already squeezing developing countries. When money is no longer cheap, businesses with healthier balance sheets and clear earnings growth prospects can look relatively better. This article breaks down three such high potential US stocks from our quality growth screener, explaining the factors that analysts currently cite when discussing their profit outlooks over the next few years. The three stocks profiled below are just a sample set, and the full screen surfaced 287 more companies with similarly compelling growth stories and balance sheet profiles that are not covered here. If you want to go further than this short list and systematically identify candidates that match your own risk and return criteria, head straight into the Healthy high growth potential screener. Credo Technology Group Holding plugs directly into the Healthy high growth potential theme through its high-speed connectivity hardware for data centers and AI networking, making it a useful case study for how earnings-focused growth stories can be tied to very specific infrastructure needs. Credo Technology Group Holding designs high-speed connectivity products such as ZeroFlap active electrical cables, optical transceivers, memory solutions, and retimer chips that link AI data centers and high-bandwidth networks. The business currently reports about US$1.6b in semiconductor related revenue and carries a market value near US$40.7b. "The DustPhotonics acquisition gives Credo a weapon to fight in this longer-range, higher-bandwidth territory that was previously Marvell's exclusive domain." What happens to Credo's earnings trajectory if a single assumption about future AI data-center demand or customer concentration shifts? If that assumption moves even slightly, read the full narrative for Credo Technology Group Holding to see how Credo Technology Group Holding's earnings story could accelerate or stall. USA Rare Earth is building an integrated rare-earth mining and processing chain around its Round Top Mountain project and Wheat Ridge facility, targeting critical materials used across defense, semiconductors, EVs, and energy that fit the Healthy high growth potential theme. The stock is valued at about US$3.1b. USA Rare Earth focuses on rare earths and other critical minerals. These materials feed into everything from fighter jets to electric motors to data centers, which is why policymakers and analysts are watching the business closely right now. "The award comes through the DOE's Critical Materials Innovation, Efficiency and Alternatives program and is aimed at advancing a pilot-scale rare earth element (REE) separations project within the United States." What happens to USA Rare Earth's earnings potential if a single assumption about the cost of getting those materials out of the ground and into magnets shifts? If that cost curve bends faster or slower than expected, read the full narrative for USA Rare Earth to see how USA Rare Earth's earnings profile could accelerate or stall. CrowdStrike Holdings runs a cloud delivered cybersecurity platform where Falcon subscriptions for endpoint, cloud workload, identity, and data protection are the clearest link to the Healthy high growth potential theme. These subscriptions generate about US$5.4b from security software and services on a roughly US$282.2b market value. CrowdStrike illustrates how recurring cybersecurity subscriptions can fit this Healthy high growth potential screen. Falcon SaaS contracts connect multi year protection needs to a model built around predictable earnings and expanding AI focused security use cases. "The introduction of Falcon Flex, a subscription model that accelerates module adoption and simplifies procurement, is increasing customer commitment and lengthening customer relationships, which may lead to increased future revenue and improved net margins due to larger, bundled sales." What happens to CrowdStrike's earnings and free cash flow profile if one assumption about how broadly customers adopt its newer AI focused security tools breaks? If that demand curve snaps in a different direction, read the full narrative for CrowdStrike Holdings to see how CrowdStrike's earnings engine could keep accelerating or stall abruptly. Fresh opportunities move fast. Breakout trends, quiet momentum and under the radar cash generators can be caught early or missed completely. Scan what others overlook and act now. - Spot cash rich compounders before momentum headlines catch up by running the list of solid balance sheet and fundamentals (25 results). This list may still be flying under most investors' radars. - Ride structural demand shifts in critical materials by scanning the 33 best rare earth metal stocks and focus on producers that align with your risk tolerance and time horizon. - Track the build out of next generation computing by filtering through the 25 quantum computing stocks and concentrate on businesses tied directly to real-world deployment, not just headlines. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

Artisan Partners, an investment management company, released its third-quarter 2026 investor letter for the "Artisan Developing World Fund". The letter can be downloaded here. The Artisan Developing World Fund (Investor Class) returned 3.50% in the quarter ending September 30, 2026, outperforming the MSCI Emerging Markets Index's -0.37%. Since June 30, 2015, its cumulative returns have been 172.0% compared to the Index's 128.8%. The quarter saw heightened Middle Eastern conflict, leading to inflation pressures and a selloff in long-dated bonds across the US, Japan, and Europe. This climate pressured markets, particularly in Korea, where the MSCI Korea Index fell significantly before rebounding, while Brazil's market stood out with an 8.18% rise. India's economy appears resilient despite challenges, bolstered by reforms and foreign currency schemes, while consumer wealth is growing significantly. A handful of outsized winners—led by NVIDIA, MercadoLibre, Sea, Visa, and CrowdStrike—have significantly driven cumulative portfolio returns. To capture the sustained compounding of these market leaders while prioritizing portfolio permanence, the strategy expands diversification across correlation stocks to optimize stability through market volatility. Also, check the fund's top five holdings to see its best picks in 2026. In its Q3 2026 investor letter, the Artisan Developing World Fund highlighted Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB). Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) is a Singapore-based technology company that offers a platform for a wide range of on-demand services. On October 07, 2026, Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) closed at $3.08, with a $12.56 billion market capitalization. Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) posted a 38.28% YTD pullback, trading within a 52-week range of $2.74 to 6.40. Artisan Developing World Fund stated the following regarding Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) in its Q3 2026 investor letter: "Bottom contributors to performance for the quarter included Southeast Asian mobility company Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB). Grab Holdings declined due to a potential stake sale by Uber and the implementation of a commission cap on two-wheeler rides in Indonesia." Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) is not on our list of the 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 48 hedge fund portfolios held Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) at the end of the second quarter, which was 50 in the previous quarter.While we acknowledge the potential of Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. In another article, we discussed Grab Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:GRAB) and shared a list of best SPACs to invest in. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q3 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors. READ NEXT: 33 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 15 Stocks That Will Make You Rich in 10 Years. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.

Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT) and CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) each reported roughly 26% revenue growth in their latest quarters. Investors nevertheless pay about 53 times Fortinet's current-year adjusted earnings guidance and 215 times CrowdStrike's. The gap raises a useful question: how much more should durable subscription growth cost when the cheaper company already earns substantial reported profits? The multiples use October 2 closing prices of $180.95 and $270.04, divided by guidance midpoints of $3.44 and $1.255. Fortinet's year ends December 2026; CrowdStrike's ends January 2027. CrowdStrike's price and earnings are both adjusted for July's four-for-one split. Our earlier CrowdStrike–Palo Alto valuation comparison tests a different rival; Fortinet adds a sharper hardware-versus-subscription challenge. Photo from Fortinet website Fortinet's June-quarter product revenue jumped 52%, while services grew 14%. Hardware demand can arrive in bursts as customers upgrade networks.Converting the product surge into recurring service revenue would make growth more durable when the hardware upgrade cycle slows. That matters when judging the businesses in our high-growth, low-debt stock screen: financial flexibility and growth durability answer different questions. CrowdStrike's July-quarter ending annual recurring revenue grew 25% to $5.84 billion. Net new ARR increased 51% to $333 million, supporting a case for accelerating customer commitments. Its security platform spans endpoints, identity and cloud workloads. Our agentic-AI stock shortlist examines where security fits among the platforms companies need as automated work spreads. Fortinet is also expanding beyond appliances. Management reported 35% billings growth in Unified SASE, which combines networking and security services, and 25% in AI-driven Security Operations. These are billings measures, not recognized revenue. The premium requires more durable, profitable growth. Our analysis of cybersecurity's split from the AI infrastructure trade asks why security budgets might follow a different spending cycle. Insider Monkey's Q2 2026 holder count rose to 62 from 52 in Q1 for Fortinet and to 89 from 79 for CrowdStrike. Arrowstreet increased Fortinet shares about 5%; D. E. Shaw increased CrowdStrike shares 18%. The competing business models both drew broader fund ownership. Fortinet earned a 33.7% GAAP operating margin in Q2. CrowdStrike recorded a $33.2 million GAAP operating loss on $1.47 billion of revenue, despite substantial adjusted profit. CrowdStrike's reconciliation adds back $399 million of stock compensation and related payroll taxes, about 27% of revenue. That makes a fourfold adjusted-earnings multiple gap especially demanding. Cash flow provides a second lens. Fortinet generated reported $966 million of free cash flow, or 47.2% of revenue, while CrowdStrike reported $377 million, or about 26%; their free-cash-flow definitions differ. Collections and working capital make one quarter an imperfect comparison, and stock compensation can support cash flow while diluting shareholders. Our cash-flow screen that includes Fortinet examines that distinction; our return-on-equity ranking shows why high reported profitability also needs a balance-sheet check. CrowdStrike's strongest defense is a longer growth runway. Security agents could increase the value of its installed platform and proprietary customer context. The commercial question behind its cybersecurity work with Nvidia is whether that advantage becomes incremental revenue. Its expanded OpenAI partnership presents a related test: better models must strengthen pricing power enough to offset competition and deployment costs. As an illustration, if Fortinet's adjusted earnings per share grew 15% annually for five years with both share prices unchanged, CrowdStrike would need roughly 52% annual earnings-per-share growth to reach Fortinet's resulting multiple of about 26 times earnings. This is a valuation sensitivity, not a forecast; faster Fortinet growth would raise the hurdle. CrowdStrike can outperform without fully closing the gap, but continued premium pricing carries risk. CrowdStrike's September 15 short interest was 27.93 million shares, approximately 2.8% of float, with 2.42 days to cover. That dated snapshot offers limited support for a squeeze thesis. Fortinet is my relative preference, though 53 times guided earnings still requires sustained growth. I would reconsider if its service growth stalls while CrowdStrike converts rising ARR into much faster per-share profits with less dilution. The risk explored in our analysis of AI and cybersecurity moats matters to both: stronger tools can expand demand while narrowing product differences. CrowdStrike must monetize that change exceptionally well to justify today's price. While we acknowledge the potential of FTNT and CRWD as investments, we believe certain other AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.

A month has gone by since the last earnings report for CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD). Shares have added about 13.9% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500. Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is CrowdStrike due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers. CrowdStrike reported non-GAAP earnings of 31 cents per share for the second quarter of fiscal 2027, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6.9%. The bottom line increased 34.8% year over year. Revenues of $1.47 billion beat the consensus estimate by 2.2% and increased 25.8% year over year. Record net new annual recurring revenue (ARR), with accelerating Falcon Flex adoption and AI-security demand, supported the quarter. Subscription revenues increased 27% year over year to $1.4 billion. Professional services revenues rose 7% to $70.61 million. Management said international revenue growth accelerated for the fifth consecutive quarter. The geographic revenue mix was approximately 65% from the United States and 35% from international markets. Ending ARR reached $5.84 billion, up more than 25% year over year. Net new ARR hit a record $333 million and increased 51% from the year-ago period. New-logo net new ARR also reached an all-time high, while dollar-based gross and net retention improved sequentially. Falcon Flex remained a major expansion engine. Ending ARR from Flex accounts surpassed $2.29 billion, up 101% year over year. The company had more than 2,900 Flex customers and over 630 customers that had re-Flexed as of quarter-end. Customers converting from standard subscriptions to Flex delivered an average ending ARR uplift of more than 40%. Cloud Security ending ARR exceeded $905 million and grew more than 29% year over year. Next-Gen SIEM ending ARR surpassed $695 million, up more than 60%, while Next-Gen Identity exceeded $585 million and grew more than 33%. Together, these businesses generated record second-quarter net new ARR. AI Detection and Response, or AIDR, also gained traction, with ending ARR nearly tripling sequentially. CrowdStrike said customers are increasingly deploying AI while seeking visibility, data protection and identity controls around AI agents. Subscription customer adoption reached 51% for six or more modules, 35% for seven or more and 26% for eight or more. Non-GAAP subscription gross profit increased 28.4% year over year to $1.14 billion. The corresponding margin expanded to 81% from 80%. Total non-GAAP gross margin was 79% compared with 78% a year earlier. Non-GAAP operating income surged 45.8% to $371.65 million, while the operating margin expanded to 25% from 22%. Non-GAAP sales and marketing expenses rose 13.3% to $412.87 million, research and development expenses increased 31.1% to $284.79 million, and general and administrative expenses grew 24% to $87.89 million. Cash and cash equivalents totaled $5.01 billion as of July 31, 2026. CrowdStrike generated $530.3 million in cash from operations, up 59.3% year over year. Free cash flow increased 33.1% to $377.4 million and represented 26% of revenues. For the third quarter of fiscal 2027, CRWD expects revenues between $1.52 billion and $1.53 billion. ARR is projected between $6.184 billion and $6.188 billion, while non-GAAP earnings are expected to be approximately 31 cents per share. For fiscal 2027, revenues are now projected between $5.991 billion and $6.011 billion, with ARR of $6.603 billion to $6.612 billion. Non-GAAP earnings per share are expected between $1.25 and $1.26. Management raised its full-year net new ARR growth outlook by 630 basis points to 34% at the midpoint, supported by record pipeline and continued Falcon Flex momentum. In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates. The consensus estimate has shifted -93.51% due to these changes. At this time, CrowdStrike has a strong Growth Score of A, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with an F. Following the exact same course, the stock has a grade of F on the value side, putting it in the fifth quintile for this investment strategy. Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in. Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. It's no surprise CrowdStrike has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). We expect a below average return from the stock in the next few months. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CrowdStrike (CRWD) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

BlackBerry (NYSE:BB), a security software and vehicle-embedded systems provider, closed at $8.72, up 4.06%. The stock rose after premarket Q2 results beat estimates and management lifted full-year fiscal 2027 guidance. Investors are next watching automotive software demand and QNX growth. Trading volume reached 43.2M shares, coming in about 134% above its three-month average of 18.4M shares. BlackBerry IPO'd in 1999 and has grown 354% since going public. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) closed at 7,704, down 0.03%, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) closed at 26,939, up 0.01%. In cybersecurity and embedded software for automotive, enterprise, and government customers, sector rivals Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) closed at $389.92, down 0.86%, and CrowdStrike Holdings (NASDAQ:CRWD) closed at $259.67, down 1.07%, after recent AI-security and guidance updates kept the group in focus. BlackBerry reported Q2 earnings that soared past analysts' expectations on Thursday, with sales and adjusted EBITDA rising 26% and 81%, respectively. The company's "crown jewel," QNX unit, delivered 27% sales growth and continues to dominate the automotive software niche. However, it will likely be QNX's expansion beyond this automotive focus that could prove to be the deal-breaker for BB stock's investment thesis over the long haul, as the safety-first operating system moves into areas such as autonomous vehicles, robotics, robotic surgical systems, and physical AI more broadly. As a leader in this corner of the "Internet of Things" world, BlackBerry is a stock that I'll keep a close eye on, but at 46 times forward earnings, I'm not rushing out to buy more shares just yet. Before you buy stock in BlackBerry, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and BlackBerry wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut are built for long-term growth and could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $384,839!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,385,657!* That performance is why people listen. With a track record of beating the S&P 500 by 4x, Stock Advisor offers a distinct advantage. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built for the long haul. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of September 24, 2026. Josh Kohn-Lindquist has positions in BlackBerry and CrowdStrike. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends CrowdStrike. The Motley Fool recommends BlackBerry and Palo Alto Networks. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Stock Market Today, Sept. 24: BlackBerry Lifts Fiscal 2027 Guidance on Record QNX Revenue was originally published by The Motley Fool

BlackBerry Limited BB is set to report second-quarter fiscal 2027 results on Sept. 24.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the bottom line currently stands at 4 cents and has remained unchanged over the past 60 days. The company expects non-GAAP EPS to be in the range of 3-4 cents.The company expects fiscal second-quarter revenues to be in the $137-$148 million range. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues currently stands at $143 million. BlackBerry’s earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average beat being 94.6%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for BlackBerry this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. But that is not the case here. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.BB has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. BlackBerry enters this earnings season from a position of improving operational strength along with growing momentum across its QNX and Secure Communications divisions. The company expects fiscal second-quarter revenues of $70-$75 million for QNX. Adjusted EBITDA is projected between $16 million and $21 million.QNX is likely to have benefited from continued adoption across software-defined vehicles, centralized compute, digital cockpits and advanced driver assistance systems. Beyond automotive, General Embedded Markets is a fast-growing opportunity, expanding QNX’s reach into robotics, industrial automation and medical devices, while Physical AI represents another significant growth avenue. In August, QNX announced support for the Hailo-8 AI Accelerator on QNX SDP 8.0. This will expand the hardware options available to customers building AI-powered edge systems. Before that, QNX OS for Safety (built on QNX SDP 8.0) was selected by Momenta, a Physical AI company, and XHEART as the operating-system foundation for their Physical AI-defined autonomous driving platform. In the last reported quarter, QNX revenues surged 26% year over year to $72 million, driven by broad-based strength, particularly in development licenses, professional services and royalties. Development-license revenues reached their highest level in eight quarters. This metric serves as an early indicator of future royalty streams, reflecting customer investments in new software platforms that will take years to reach production. Management emphasized that these tools are tied to new platforms, including its SDP 8 architecture, which positions the company for multi-year revenue visibility. BlackBerry Limited price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | BlackBerry Limited Quote Alloy Kore will also remain a key investor focus. The platform is expected to significantly increase software content per vehicle, boost average selling price by multiples and drive backlog. While still early, management remains positive about securing a design win within the current fiscal year.Nonetheless, QNX’s automotive exposure remains a factor to watch. The QNX platform remains exposed to vehicle production cycles and OEM spending, which, in turn, are dependent on macro conditions. Newer opportunities such as Physical AI and Alloy Kore remain at relatively early stages, with design wins and backlog likely to precede a more meaningful build-up in royalty revenues.Secure Communications business continues to stabilize. Its revenues increased 24% year over year to $74 million in the last reported quarter. The segment has been witnessing improved performance anchored by government demand, recurring revenues and customer retention. Rising demand for digital sovereignty and cybersecurity modernization by governments across the globe has been creating a powerful tailwind.BlackBerry expects fiscal second-quarter Secure Communications revenues of $57-$63 million. Adjusted EBITDA is anticipated between $5 million and $10 million.Management specifically cautioned that large government transactions have long sales cycles and do not occur every quarter, making the exceptional fiscal first-quarter growth and profitability unlikely to repeat in a straight line. The fiscal first-quarter performance benefited materially from the expansion and multi-year extension of BlackBerry's agreement with Shared Services Canada. BlackBerry Limited revenue-quarterly | BlackBerry Limited Quote Underlying metrics such as annual recurring revenues (“ARR”) and customer retention indicate a steady base. ARR grew more than 5% to $220 million, with a healthy dollar-based net retention rate, or DBNRR, at 92%. Licensing should be another positive contributor. BlackBerry raised its fiscal second-quarter Licensing revenue expectation to approximately $10 million, well above the $6.6 million reported a year ago. The quality of BlackBerry's revenue mix will be critical to fiscal second-quarter profitability. QNX's adjusted gross margin reached 86% in the fiscal first quarter. Management noted that QNX royalties carry high incremental margins, and expects increasing royalty contribution over time to support margin expansion, operating leverage and cash generation. For the fiscal second quarter, BlackBerry expects adjusted EBITDA of $20-$30 million and operating cash flow between breakeven and $10 million. BB’s shares are up 157% in the past six months, significantly outpacing the Internet Software industry’s 19% growth. The broader Zacks Computer & Technology sector and the S&P 500 composite have gained 26.2% and 16%, respectively. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research The company has also outperformed some of its peers as well. BlackBerry faces increasing competitive pressures in both QNX and cybersecurity businesses. Within QNX, it faces Aptiv PLC’s APTV Wind River (VxWorks) and Alphabet’s Android Automotive OS. BlackBerry operates alongside CrowdStrike CRWD, Palo Alto Networks PANW and a host of other companies in the broader cybersecurity market. CRWD and PANW have gained 141.4% and 126.7%, respectively, while APTV has declined 38.6% over the same period. BB is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings multiple of 42.23, higher than the industry’s multiple of 29.2. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research APTV, PANW and CrowdStrike are trading at forward 12-month price/earnings multiple of 6.89X, 86.75X and 167.85X, respectively. BlackBerry’s improving fundamentals and QNX momentum provide a solid backdrop heading into the fiscal second-quarter report. However, the stock’s sharp run-up and premium valuation leave limited room for execution missteps. Existing investors may prefer to stay invested, while new investors are better off waiting for clearer evidence that earnings growth can keep pace with the recent share-price gains. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BlackBerry Limited (BB) : Free Stock Analysis Report Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW) : Free Stock Analysis Report Aptiv PLC (APTV) : Free Stock Analysis Report CrowdStrike (CRWD) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

CrowdStrike (CRWD) added $333 million of net new annual recurring revenue in fiscal Q2 2027, a record and 51% more than a year earlier. That figure is the case for a stock at its 52-week high, up 117% over the past year. It is also the number to worry about. At 44.5 times sales, the price looks built on that pace, and the company's own guide for fiscal Q3 2027 calls for a slower one. CrowdStrike Is Still Speeding Up Quarter by quarter, growth is picking up. Revenue growth accelerated for the fifth consecutive quarter, to 26%, in fiscal Q2 2027. The Falcon platform began as endpoint security, and management says much of its customers' AI is consumed on the endpoint. Since April, when new AI models made security a necessity for AI adoption, customers have been buying protection for AI agents on the endpoint. AIDR, its AI detection and response product, nearly tripled its ending ARR from fiscal Q1 2027. Falcon Flex, a subscription covering several Falcon products at once, is how the company sells. CrowdStrike added more than 935 Flex accounts in fiscal Q2 2027, more than in the prior three quarters combined. But The Price Looks Built On That Record Quarter A multiple of 44.5 times sales likely assumes the acceleration keeps going, and fiscal Q2 2027 made that case. Management had guided net new ARR growth of 28 to 29% for fiscal Q2 2027 and delivered 51%, beating the top of its range by more than $45 million. Was that beat demand pulled forward by the rush to secure AI, or a lasting step up? Management says lasting, pointing to a record pipeline for fiscal Q3 2027 and a fiscal 2027 net new ARR outlook it has now raised twice. And CrowdStrike's Own Guide Calls For Slower For fiscal Q3 2027, management guided net new ARR from $343 million to $347 million, up 29 to 31% year over year. That would be a new dollar record and a step down in growth from the 51% of fiscal Q2 2027. Management calls its guidance prudent, and the fiscal Q2 2027 guide looked the same before the company beat it. The scare is the gap between that guide and the price. A quarter that only meets the guide would be good for the business, and the first sign the 51% pace may not hold. That leaves little cushion. How Worried Should You Be At 44.5 Times Sales? Not about the business. Revenue, net new ARR, and the Falcon Flex base are all accelerating, and AIDR runs on the sensor customers already have. Worry about the price. The stock has more than doubled over the past year, and options are braced: implied volatility sits in the 88th percentile of its one-year range, pricing an unusually large move. Fiscal Q3 2027 changes the read. New recurring revenue above $347 million would be another dollar record, but growth at that level is about 31%, well short of the 51% pace. Only a result near $400 million would say that pace is lasting. A result inside the guided range would reopen the pull-forward question. Before then, see how large a move the options market is pricing for CRWD. Do You Keep Holding CrowdStrike At The High? Perhaps, if you would still want the shares after a quarter that only met the guide. That is a hard test on one name and harder across every AI name priced the same way. If you would rather not run it stock by stock, the Trefis High Quality Portfolio holds quality businesses chosen on results rather than on a story. That portfolio has a track record of outpacing the three major indices.