Fortinet and Check Point shares rise on better-than-expected earnings

Shares in cybersecurity firms Fortinet Inc. and Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. rose after the companies reported better-than-expected results in their quarterly earnings reports.

For the quarter ending Dec. 31., Fortinet reported non-generally accepted accounting principles earnings of $205.8 million or $1.23 per share compared to $1.06 per share in the same quarter of 2020. Revenue in the quarter came in at $963.6 million, up 28.8% year-over-year.

Analysts had expected earnings of $1.05 per share on revenue of $960.5 million.

Product revenue in the quarter came in $378.8 million, up 31.4% year-over-year and service revenue was reported to be $584.7 million, up 27.2%. Billings were up 35.9% to $1.31 billion.

For the full year 2021, Fortinet reported non-GAAP earnings of $606.8 million or $3.63 per share compared to $448.5 million or $2.91 per share in 2020.

“Our 2021 performance was driven by increased demand for our cybersecurity solutions and exceptional execution from our global operations and sales teams and excellent support from our channel partners and distributors,” Ken Xie, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Fortinet said in a statement. Fortinet’s integrated and single platform approach to security is resonating with customers that want to effectively protect their corporate networks from a wide range of attack vectors.”

Looking forward, Fortinet is predicting non-GAAP earnings of between 75 cents and 80 cents per share in the first quarter on revenue of between $865 million to $895 million. For the full year, the company is estimating non-GAAP earnings of between $4.85 to $5 per share on revenue between $4.275 billion to $4.325 billion. Analysts had projected full-year earnings of $4.62 per share on revenue of $3.965 billion.

Similarly strong results were also seen at Check Point which reported non-GAAP earnings of $2.25 per share – up 4% year-over-year on revenue of $599 million – up 6%. Analysts had been expecting $2.14 per share on revenue of $585.9 million.

For the full year, Check Point reported earnings per share of $7.02 per share on revenue of $2.167 billion.

“We closed 2021 with strong financial results. This was the sixth consecutive quarter with an accelerated billings reaching 14 percent growth for the quarter,” Gil Shwed, founder and CEO of Check Point, said in a statement. “Our success continues to be driven by our Infinity platform’s capabilities and the unique strengths of our key pillars: Check Point Quantum network security solutions, Check Point Harmony and Check Point CloudGuard.”

For the first quarter, Check Point predicted earnings per share of $1.48 and $1.58 on revenue of between $517 million to $547 million.

The results from both companies were well received by investors. Check Point released its earnings at the opening of trading and saw its stock up 2.43% to $126.68 as of 4 p.m. EST. Fortinet released their earnings after the bell and saw its stock up 3.37% to $307 as if 7:42 p.m. EST.

Image: Space Coast Daily