Fortinet (FTNT) Shares Climb After Topping Q4 Earnings Estimates

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TLDR

  • Fortinet (FTNT) shares gained 2.8% in premarket trading following its report of Q4 adjusted earnings per share of $0.81, which exceeded analysts’ expected $0.74.
  • Fourth-quarter revenue increased 15% year-over-year to $1.91 billion, surpassing the $1.86 billion projection.
  • Billings rose 18% to $2.37 billion, beating Wall Street’s $2.24 billion estimate.
  • The firm expanded its share repurchase program by $1 billion, raising the total authorized amount to $10.25 billion through February 2027.
  • Fortinet provided Q1 2026 revenue guidance of $1.70 billion to $1.76 billion, which slightly exceeded expectations despite mixed earnings guidance.

Fortinet’s stock advanced Friday morning even though tech stocks had a tough week. The cybersecurity firm posted fourth-quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates across critical metrics.

Shares rose 2.8% to $81.11 in premarket trading. This move went against the broader market trend, as S&P 500 futures stayed flat after Thursday’s 1.2% decline.

The company announced adjusted earnings per share of $0.81 for Q4 2025. This exceeded the consensus estimate of $0.74 per share by almost 10%.

FTNT Stock Card

Revenue increased 15% year-over-year to $1.91 billion. Analysts had forecast $1.86 billion.

Billings totaled $2.37 billion, an 18% increase from the previous year. Wall Street anticipated $2.24 billion. In the cybersecurity industry, billings are a leading indicator of future revenue.

Product revenue grew 20% to $691 million. Unified SASE billings surged 40%, indicating strong demand for the company’s cloud-based security offerings.

Guidance Beats Despite Tech Selloff

Fortinet released first-quarter guidance that exceeded revenue expectations. The company forecasts revenue of $1.70 billion to $1.76 billion.

It also anticipates billings of $1.77 billion to $1.87 billion, which beat analyst forecasts. However, the midpoint of its earnings guidance—$0.59 to $0.63 per share—was slightly below expectations.

For full-year 2026, Fortinet provided revenue guidance of $7.50 billion to $7.70 billion. It forecasts billings of $8.40 billion to $8.60 billion.

The company recorded a non-GAAP operating margin of 37% in Q4. Full-year non-GAAP operating margin hit 35%.

Fortinet produced $2.21 billion in free cash flow for 2025. The company met its “Rule of 45” metric—combining revenue growth and profit margins—for the sixth consecutive year.

Expanded Buyback Program

The company revealed a $1 billion expansion of its share repurchase program. The total authorized amount now is $10.25 billion through February 2027.

As of February 4, about $1.38 billion was still available under the program, including the new $1 billion addition.

Fortinet’s shares had fallen 2.9% since Tuesday’s market open in the lead-up to the earnings release. Tech stocks were hit hard this week due to worries about artificial intelligence valuations and weak results from Alphabet, AMD, and .

The cybersecurity sector might avoid the worst of the selloff. Demand for security software withstands economic slowdowns better than other tech segments.

Fortinet currently trades at fewer than 27 times projected 2026 earnings. That valuation is inexpensive relative to other cybersecurity companies.

CEO Ken Xie emphasized the company’s leadership in firewalls in a statement. Fortinet has a 55% unit market share in the firewall segment.

The company disclosed partnerships with for AI infrastructure security and was named a Google Unified Security Recommended partner. It also earned a 2025 Red Dot Product Design Award for its FortiGate Rugged series.