What Happened:
Shares of network application delivery and security specialist F5 (NASDAQ:FFIV) jumped 7.25% in the afternoon session after the company reported third-quarter results that narrowly beat analysts' revenue expectations. On a brighter note, earnings per share beat by an impressive 12%. Free cash flow also improved significantly compared to the previous quarter. Management added some bullish comments, stating that demand is stabilizing and that F5 Networks should be able to grow non-GAAP EPS by a double-digit percentage, which is higher than expectations. That really stood out as a positive in these results. On the other hand, its underwhelming revenue guidance for next quarter was disappointing (although next quarter's EPS guidance was in-line). Overall, this was a mixed quarter for F5 Networks, but the double-digit percentage non-GAAP EPS growth for the full year is being received well. After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $159, up 0.02% from previous close.
What is the market telling us:
F5 Networks's shares are not very volatile than the market average and over the last year have had only 4 moves greater than 5%. In context of that, today's move is indicating the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business. The previous big move was three months ago, when the stock dropped 6.85% on the news that the company reported underwhelming earnings, which narrowly beat analysts' revenue estimates. However, revenue guidance for the next quarter was below consensus estimates. Following the results, Barclays analyst downgraded the stock's rating from Overweight (Buy) to Equal-Weight (Hold).
F5 Networks is up 9.77% since the beginning of the year, and at $159 per share it is trading close to its 52-week high of $173.70 from August 2022. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of F5 Networks' shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $907.53.
Is now the time to buy F5 Networks? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.
On this page, you can find detailed information about the financial performance of F5 Networks, including the latest F5 Networks earnings report and upcoming earnings date. The page provides an overview of the company's financial health, with key data points such as the current stock price, earnings per share, and revenue compared against the forecast.
F5 Networks (NASDAQ:) shares jumped more than 11% in pre-market Tuesday after the company reported Q3 , with EPS of $3.21 coming in better than the consensus estimate of $2.86.
Revenue grew 4% year-over-year to $703 million, beating the consensus estimate of $698.81M. Global services revenue increased 8% year-over-year, while product revenue was up 1%, reflecting 5% systems revenue growth and software revenue that was down 3%.
“We are delivering the gross margin improvement and operating leverage we committed to, and we are confident in our ability to achieve our target of double-digit non-GAAP earnings growth for fiscal year 2023,” said CEO François Locoh-Donou.
For Q4/23, the company expects EPS in the range of $3.15-$3.27, compared to the consensus of $3.22, and revenue in the range of $690-$710M, compared to the consensus estimate of $702M.
Goldman Sachs analysts highlighted software strength.
"FFIV’s has demonstrated effective cost discipline with opex better-than-expected, driven in part by headcount reductions in April. Cost savings should be the primary driver of FFIV’s reiterated F2024 target of DD% EPS growth and at least 300 bps of margin expansion," the analysts wrote.
Additional reporting by Senad Karaahmetovic
What Happened:
Shares of network application delivery and security specialist F5 (NASDAQ:FFIV) jumped 7.25% in the afternoon session after the company reported third-quarter results that narrowly beat analysts' revenue expectations. On a brighter note, earnings per share beat by an impressive 12%. Free cash flow also improved significantly compared to the previous quarter. Management added some bullish comments, stating that demand is stabilizing and that F5 Networks should be able to grow non-GAAP EPS by a double-digit percentage, which is higher than expectations. That really stood out as a positive in these results. On the other hand, its underwhelming revenue guidance for next quarter was disappointing (although next quarter's EPS guidance was in-line). Overall, this was a mixed quarter for F5 Networks, but the double-digit percentage non-GAAP EPS growth for the full year is being received well. After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $159, up 0.02% from previous close.
What is the market telling us:
F5 Networks's shares are not very volatile than the market average and over the last year have had only 4 moves greater than 5%. In context of that, today's move is indicating the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business. The previous big move was three months ago, when the stock dropped 6.85% on the news that the company reported underwhelming earnings, which narrowly beat analysts' revenue estimates. However, revenue guidance for the next quarter was below consensus estimates. Following the results, Barclays analyst downgraded the stock's rating from Overweight (Buy) to Equal-Weight (Hold).
F5 Networks is up 9.77% since the beginning of the year, and at $159 per share it is trading close to its 52-week high of $173.70 from August 2022. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of F5 Networks' shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $907.53.
Is now the time to buy F5 Networks? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.
It doesn't matter your age or experience: taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for all investors.
While you may have an investing style you rely on, finding great stocks is made easier with the Zacks Style Scores. These are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on value, growth, and/or momentum characteristics.
Is This 1 Momentum Stock a Screaming Buy Right Now?
Momentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.
F5 Networks (FFIV)
Seattle, WA-based F5 Networks Inc, founded in 1996, provides products and services to manage Internet traffic worldwide. Its application, delivery and networking products Strengthen performance, availability and security of applications running on networks that use the Internet Protocol (IP).
FFIV sits at a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), holds a Momentum Style Score of B, and has a VGM Score of B. The stock is down 1.6% and up 4.1% over the past one-week and four-week period, respectively, and F5 Networks has lost 10.7% in the last one-year period as well. Additionally, an average of 676,064.38 shares were traded over the last 20 trading sessions.
Momentum investors also pay close attention to a company's earnings. For FFIV, nine analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.35 to $11.42 per share for 2023. FFIV boasts an average earnings surprise of 6.4%.
With strong earnings growth, a good Zacks Rank, and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, investors should think about adding FFIV to their portfolios.
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F5, Inc. (FFIV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
