In recent transactions reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ken Xie, President and CEO of Fortinet Inc. (NASDAQ:), traded shares worth about $4.43 million in two days. The sale took place on December 17 and 18, with stock prices ranging from $93.53 to $99.21 per share. The cybersecurity giant, currently valued at $72.57 billion, has seen its stock rise more than 59% year to date, according to the report. InvestingPro data.
On December 17, Xie sold 22,916 shares, with prices ranging between $97.06 and $99.36. The next day, he sold an additional 22,628 shares, with prices ranging from $92.93 to $98.36. These transactions were made under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, which allows insiders to set up a trading plan to sell the stocks they own. The stock is currently trading near its 52-week high of $100.59, with InvestingPro Analysis shows the company maintains impressive profit margins of nearly 80%.
Alongside these sales, Xie exercised options to acquire 83,333 shares at a price of $9.812 each, or about $817,663. Following this transaction, Xie holds direct ownership of more than 49 million shares in Fortinet.
These transactions are part of routine financial management by management and are often planned in advance to avoid any potential conflict of interest.
In other recent news, Fortinet, a cybersecurity company, has seen several updates from financial firms. KeyBanc Capital Markets upgraded the stock from Underweight to Overweight, setting a new price target of $115.00, citing an industry-wide upside opportunity in 2025. Scotiabank (TSX:) raised its price target to $110.00, maintaining a Sector Outperform rating, while Rosenblatt Securities raised its price target to $100.00, maintaining a Buy rating. TD Cowen reiterated a Buy rating and raised the stock's price target to $105.
Fortinet's Q3 2024 results showed a 13% increase in total revenue to $1.508 billion, a record gross margin of 83.2%, and an operating margin of 36.1%. The company also announced the addition of Janet Napolitano, former US Secretary of Defense and Governor of Arizona, to its board of directors.
In another note, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: ) reported a 16% year-over-year increase in revenue for Q1 FY2025, reaching $65.6 billion. Their cloud unit, Microsoft Cloud, also reported strong performance, with revenue of over $38.9 billion, marking a 22% increase from last year. Analyst firms, including TD Cowen, Citi, Mizuho (NYSE:), and Goldman Sachs, maintained their positive outlook on Microsoft stock. This is a recent development that investors should consider.
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