Fortinet reported March-quarter earnings, revenue and billings topped analyst estimates amid supply chain issues. But FTNT stock fell amid a broad sell-off in the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Fortinet reported first-quarter earnings after the market close on Wednesday. Fortinet stock initially rose on the earnings release. But FTNT stock was down 1.8% to near 282 in afternoon trading on the stock market today.
Fortinet earnings on an adjusted basis came in at 94 cents per share, up 16% from a year earlier. Also, revenue for FTNT stock climbed 34% to $954.8 million. Analysts expected Fortinet earnings of 80 cents a share on sales of $885 million for the period ended March 31.
The cybersecurity firm said billings, a sales growth metric, rose 36% to $1.16 billion compared with analyst estimates of $1.08 billion.
FTNT Stock: Profit Outlook Below Views
For the current quarter ending in June, the company forecasts earnings in a range of $1.05 to $1.10 a share on revenue of $1.02 billion. Analysts had projected earnings of $1.13 a share on revenue of $1.01 billion.
The company said it expects second-quarter billings of $1.245 billion, just above estimates of $1.241 billion.
"Supply chain constraints continued to be challenging with the company taking steps such as increasing inventory purchase commitments, finding new suppliers and redesigning products to help mitigate shortfalls," said William Blair analyst Jonathan Ho in a report.
He added: "Demand outstripped the company's ability to supply product, resulting in an $80 million increase in backlog to $278 million."
Heading into the Fortinet earnings report, the cybersecurity stock was down 20% in 2022. FTNT stock holds a Relative Strength Rating of 83 out of a best-possible 99, according to IBD Stock Checkup.
The company competes in the firewall network security market against Palo Alto Networks, Check Point Software Technologies and others. Firewalls block online intrusions and monitor web-based apps.
Follow Reinhardt Krause on Twitter @reinhardtk_tech for updates on 5G wireless, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and cloud computing.
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