Fortinet (FTNT) Stock Pops 15% after Earnings — Analysts Think It Has More Room to Run

TLDR

• Fortinet stock jumped 15% in premarket trading to $103.50 after Q1 earnings crushed estimates
• EPS came in at $0.82 vs $0.62 expected; revenue hit $1.85B, up 20% year-over-year
• Billings surged 31% to $2.09B, well above the $1.82B forecast
• BTIG upgraded FTNT to Buy with a $125 price target; BofA went even higher at $130
• Fortinet raised its 2026 revenue growth guidance to 15% at the midpoint, up from 12%

Fortinet stock was up 15% to $103.50 in Thursday premarket trading, making it the top performer in the S&P 500 before the opening bell.

Fortinet, Inc., FTNT

The move came after Fortinet posted Q1 results Wednesday evening that beat across every major metric analysts track.

Adjusted EPS came in at $0.82, well above the $0.62 Wall Street was expecting. Revenue grew 20% year-over-year to $1.85 billion, topping the $1.73 billion estimate.

Billings — which factors in changes to deferred revenue — rose 31% to $2.09 billion, against a forecast of $1.82 billion.

Free cash flow hit a record $1.01 billion for the quarter, representing a 58% adjusted free cash flow margin.

Product revenue was a standout, accelerating 41% year-over-year to $645 million. Non-GAAP operating margin came in at 36%.

Analyst Upgrades Roll In

BTIG analyst Gray Powell upgraded FTNT to Buy and set a $125 price target — implying roughly 39% upside from Wednesday’s close. He called the results “outstanding” and said the beat surprised him given that his pre-earnings checks were already trending positive.

Powell also pushed back on the idea that AI is a headwind for cybersecurity firms, arguing that the rise of AI ransomware and AI data centers is actually driving more demand for Fortinet’s products.

Rosenblatt raised its price target to $125 from $105, keeping its Buy rating. The firm pointed to platform consolidation, AI-driven secure networking, and upgrades like FortiOS 8.0 and new G-Series firewalls as key growth drivers.

BofA Securities set the high bar on the Street, lifting its target to $130. Evercore ISI moved to $100, and Stifel raised to $102.

Guidance Gets a Lift

Fortinet raised its 2026 full-year revenue growth guidance to 15% at the midpoint, up from 12% previously.

The company kept its operating margin guidance at 33%–36% and reaffirmed its commitment to the Rule of 45 — a benchmark that adds revenue growth rate and free cash flow margin.

Q2 guidance also came in ahead of Street expectations.

Rosenblatt’s analysis noted Fortinet’s gross profit margin of 80%, a figure that reflects the company’s pricing power in the market.

InvestingPro’s fair value estimate for FTNT sits at $110.88, above Wednesday’s closing price of $89.95.

Fortinet said it continues to invest in cloud and AI infrastructure, with SASE momentum also flagged as a growth driver by multiple analysts.

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