Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Trims Position in Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its stake in shares of Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT – Get Rating) by 20.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,340,704 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 601,515 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Fortinet were worth $114,438,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Fortinet by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 391,345 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $133,738,000 after purchasing an additional 76,027 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its holdings in Fortinet by 24.0% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 2,280 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in Fortinet by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 430 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in Fortinet by 209.4% during the 1st quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,550 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $530,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Fortinet by 53.3% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 164 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.35% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Keith Jensen sold 98,374 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.18, for a total value of $5,920,147.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $274,962.42. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CFO Keith Jensen sold 98,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.18, for a total value of $5,920,147.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $274,962.42. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William H. Neukom bought 423 shares of Fortinet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $67.40 per share, for a total transaction of $28,510.20. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 290,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,594,258.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 144,297 shares of company stock worth $8,800,269. 18.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on FTNT shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $67.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Monday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $72.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Rosenblatt Securities initiated coverage on shares of Fortinet in a research report on Monday, May 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Fortinet from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fortinet currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.30.

Fortinet Price Performance

Shares of Fortinet stock opened at $69.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 86.92, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Fortinet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $42.61 and a fifty-two week high of $69.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $65.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.47. The company has a market cap of $54.67 billion, a PE ratio of 57.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.16.

Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 4th. The software maker reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.05. Fortinet had a net margin of 20.46% and a negative return on equity of 282.54%. The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.17 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 32.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Fortinet, Inc. will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

Fortinet Company Profile

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Fortinet, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions to a variety of businesses, such as enterprises, communication service providers and small businesses. It operates through the following segments: Network Security, Infrastructure Security, Cloud Security, and Endpoint Protection, Internet of Things and Operational Technology.