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With a market cap of around $15 billion, F5, Inc. (FFIV) is a global leader in multi-cloud application security and delivery solutions. The Seattle, Washington-based company provides advanced technologies to optimize applications' performance, availability, and security across on-premises and cloud environments.
Companies valued at $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap” stocks, and F5 fits right into that category. F5's offerings include BIG-IP systems, NGINX solutions, and distributed cloud services, enabling secure and efficient application deployment and management. Serving enterprise businesses, governments, and service providers worldwide, F5 partners with major cloud providers like AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud to deliver cutting-edge solutions.
Shares of the computer networking company are trading 3.4% below its 52-week high of $264.50, reached on Dec. 13. FFIV has increased 16.7% over the past three months, surpassing the broader Dow Jones Industrials Average’s ($DOWI) 1.6% return over the same time frame.
In the longer term, FFIV stock is up 49.3% over the past six months, outpacing DOWI’s 9.8% gain. Moreover, FFIV has surged 42.1% over the past 52 weeks, compared to DOWI’s 14.2 return over the same time frame.
FFIV has been trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages since July, indicating a bullish trend.
Shares of F5 jumped 10.1% following the company’s strong Q4 results, including adjusted EPS of $3.67 and revenue of $746.7 million, both surpassing the consensus estimate. Software revenue, a key growth driver, surged 19% year-over-year to $228 million, reinforcing F5's successful transition to a software-focused model and double-digit EPS growth for fiscal year 2024. The company also provided an optimistic outlook for fiscal 2025, projecting revenue growth of 4% - 5% and adjusted EPS growth of 5% - 7%. Additionally, the announcement of a new $1 billion share repurchase program, further boosted investor sentiment.
Furthermore, FFIV has outperformed its rival, Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO), which gained 18.2% over the past 52 weeks and 25.6% over the past six months.
Despite FFIV’s robust performance, analysts remain cautious about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” from the 12 analysts covering it, and as of writing, FFIV is trading above its mean price target of $234.89.
