Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT) by 35.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,907 shares of the software maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,014 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Fortinet were worth $372,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FTNT. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Fortinet in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fortinet during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Fortinet by 95.0% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 630 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Fortinet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Fortinet by 30.6% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 696 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Fortinet from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Fortinet in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Fortinet in a report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.72.

Fortinet Stock Performance

FTNT stock opened at $106.48 on Wednesday. Fortinet, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.57 and a twelve month high of $114.82. The firm has a market cap of $81.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.12, a PEG ratio of 4.19 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $101.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $90.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The software maker reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. Fortinet had a net margin of 29.30% and a return on equity of 256.53%. Analysts predict that Fortinet, Inc. will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Fortinet

In related news, CFO Keith Jensen sold 17,660 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.18, for a total value of $1,928,118.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $517,076.48. This represents a 78.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ken Xie sold 23,044 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.32, for a total transaction of $2,150,466.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,039,698 shares in the company, valued at $4,576,384,617.36. This trade represents a 0.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 87,120 shares of company stock valued at $8,991,409. 18.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Fortinet

Fortinet, Inc provides cybersecurity and convergence of networking and security solutions worldwide. It offers secure networking solutions focus on the convergence of networking and security; network firewall solutions that consist of FortiGate data centers, hyperscale, and distributed firewalls, as well as encrypted applications; wireless LAN solutions; and secure connectivity solutions, including FortiSwitch secure ethernet switches, FortiAP wireless local area network access points, FortiExtender 5G connectivity gateways, and other products.