Fortinet Reports Strong Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results
| FORTINET, INC. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Unaudited, in millions) | |||||||
| September 30, 2026 | December 31, 2025 | ||||||
| ASSETS | |||||||
| CURRENT ASSETS: | |||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 3,750.6 | $ | 2,495.3 | |||
| Short-term investments | 1,048.4 | 1,087.2 | |||||
| Accounts receivable-net | 1,461.0 | 1,691.2 | |||||
| Inventory | 591.2 | 399.5 | |||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | 256.8 | 227.0 | |||||
| Total current assets | 7,108.0 | 5,900.2 | |||||
| LONG-TERM INVESTMENTS | 519.4 | 339.7 | |||||
| PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT-NET | 1,729.5 | 1,619.0 | |||||
| DEFERRED CONTRACT COSTS | 815.4 | 735.5 | |||||
| DEFERRED TAX ASSETS | 1,306.9 | 1,314.9 | |||||
| GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS-NET | 348.1 | 354.7 | |||||
| OTHER ASSETS | 115.5 | 125.2 | |||||
| TOTAL ASSETS | $ | 11,942.8 | $ | 10,389.2 | |||
| LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY | |||||||
| CURRENT LIABILITIES: | |||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | 430.3 | $ | 230.8 | |||
| Accrued liabilities | 380.3 | 354.6 | |||||
| Accrued payroll and compensation | 315.9 | 312.9 | |||||
| Current portion of long-term debt | - | 499.7 | |||||
| Deferred revenue | 3,961.0 | 3,636.0 | |||||
| Total current liabilities | 5,087.5 | 5,034.0 | |||||
| DEFERRED REVENUE | 3,973.4 | 3,479.8 | |||||
| LONG-TERM DEBT | 497.1 | 496.6 | |||||
| OTHER LIABILITIES | 138.0 | 141.3 | |||||
| Total liabilities | 9,696.0 | 9,151.7 | |||||
| COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | |||||||
| STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY: | |||||||
| Common stock | 0.7 | 0.7 | |||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 1,959.7 | 1,770.1 | |||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (32.4 | ) | (25.4 | ) | |||
| Retained earnings (accumulated deficit) | 318.8 | (507.9 | ) | ||||
| Total stockholders' equity | 2,246.8 | 1,237.5 | |||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY | $ | 11,942.8 | $ | 10,389.2 |
| FORTINET, INC. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Unaudited, in millions, except per share amounts) | |||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | Nine Months Ended | ||||||||||||||
| September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | ||||||||||||
| REVENUE: | |||||||||||||||
| Product | $ | 765.0 | $ | 559.3 | $ | 2,183.1 | $ | 1,527.3 | |||||||
| Service | 1,313.4 | 1,165.6 | 3,792.8 | 3,367.3 | |||||||||||
| Total revenue | 2,078.4 | 1,724.9 | 5,975.9 | 4,894.6 | |||||||||||
| COST OF REVENUE: | |||||||||||||||
| Product | 272.6 | 180.7 | 714.7 | 496.5 | |||||||||||
| Service | 164.9 | 151.0 | 492.0 | 443.2 | |||||||||||
| Total cost of revenue | 437.5 | 331.7 | 1,206.7 | 939.7 | |||||||||||
| GROSS PROFIT: | |||||||||||||||
| Product | 492.4 | 378.6 | 1,468.4 | 1,030.8 | |||||||||||
| Service | 1,148.5 | 1,014.6 | 3,300.8 | 2,924.1 | |||||||||||
| Total gross profit | 1,640.9 | 1,393.2 | 4,769.2 | 3,954.9 | |||||||||||
| OPERATING EXPENSES: | |||||||||||||||
| Research and development | 213.4 | 202.4 | 652.4 | 610.5 | |||||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 665.0 | 583.5 | 1,970.4 | 1,718.2 | |||||||||||
| General and administrative | 59.6 | 61.4 | 176.9 | 176.1 | |||||||||||
| Gain on intellectual property matters | (1.4 | ) | (1.4 | ) | (4.1 | ) | (9.0 | ) | |||||||
| Total operating expenses | 936.6 | 845.9 | 2,795.6 | 2,495.8 | |||||||||||
| OPERATING INCOME | 704.3 | 547.3 | 1,973.6 | 1,459.1 | |||||||||||
| INTEREST INCOME | 42.7 | 40.7 | 108.8 | 130.0 | |||||||||||
| INTEREST EXPENSE | (3.0 | ) | (6.2 | ) | (10.4 | ) | (15.7 | ) | |||||||
| OTHER INCOME-NET | 11.0 | 13.0 | 59.8 | 58.0 | |||||||||||
| INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES AND GAIN (LOSS) FROM EQUITY METHOD INVESTMENTS | 755.0 | 594.8 | 2,131.8 | 1,631.4 | |||||||||||
| PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES | 119.5 | 120.7 | 356.5 | 294.3 | |||||||||||
| GAIN (LOSS) FROM EQUITY METHOD INVESTMENTS | - | (0.2 | ) | 1.0 | 10.3 | ||||||||||
| NET INCOME | $ | 635.5 | $ | 473.9 | $ | 1,776.3 | $ | 1,347.4 | |||||||
| Net income per share: | |||||||||||||||
| Basic | $ | 0.87 | $ | 0.63 | $ | 2.42 | $ | 1.77 | |||||||
| Diluted | $ | 0.86 | $ | 0.62 | $ | 2.39 | $ | 1.75 | |||||||
| Weighted-average shares outstanding: | |||||||||||||||
| Basic | 734.2 | 755.5 | 735.3 | 763.1 | |||||||||||
| Diluted | 742.6 | 761.2 | 741.7 | 770.2 |
| FORTINET, INC. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Unaudited, in millions) | |||||||
| Nine Months Ended | |||||||
| September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | ||||||
| CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: | |||||||
| Net income | $ | 1,776.3 | $ | 1,347.4 | |||
| Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: | |||||||
| Stock-based compensation | 231.9 | 207.0 | |||||
| Amortization of deferred contract costs | 290.2 | 246.0 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 120.6 | 112.5 | |||||
| Amortization of investment discounts | (13.3 | ) | (27.3 | ) | |||
| Other | (41.7 | ) | (53.1 | ) | |||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of impact of business combinations: | |||||||
| Accounts receivable-net | 231.1 | 308.7 | |||||
| Inventory | (208.7 | ) | (109.1 | ) | |||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | (3.0 | ) | (64.3 | ) | |||
| Deferred contract costs | (370.1 | ) | (305.3 | ) | |||
| Deferred tax assets | 8.9 | 13.7 | |||||
| Other assets | (10.6 | ) | (13.6 | ) | |||
| Accounts payable | 202.4 | 11.5 | |||||
| Accrued liabilities | 39.7 | (15.5 | ) | ||||
| Accrued payroll and compensation | 3.0 | 16.3 | |||||
| Deferred revenue | 817.8 | 288.1 | |||||
| Other liabilities | (7.8 | ) | 7.4 | ||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | 3,066.7 | 1,970.4 | |||||
| CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: | |||||||
| Purchases of investments | (1,161.4 | ) | (1,512.6 | ) | |||
| Sales of investments | 118.4 | 5.7 | |||||
| Maturities of investments | 954.8 | 1,317.6 | |||||
| Purchases of property and equipment | (212.8 | ) | (322.0 | ) | |||
| Payments made in connection with business combinations, net of cash acquired | (9.8 | ) | (41.6 | ) | |||
| Other | 8.4 | 0.1 | |||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (302.4 | ) | (552.8 | ) | |||
| CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: | |||||||
| Repurchase and retirement of common stock | (972.8 | ) | (2,232.6 | ) | |||
| Repayment of senior notes | (500.0 | ) | - | ||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock | 85.0 | 37.6 | |||||
| Taxes paid related to net share settlement of equity awards | (99.2 | ) | (103.7 | ) | |||
| Other | (22.0 | ) | (0.1 | ) | |||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (1,509.0 | ) | (2,298.8 | ) | |||
| EFFECT OF EXCHANGE RATE CHANGES ON CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS | - | 1.0 | |||||
| NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS | 1,255.3 | (880.2 | ) | ||||
| CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS-Beginning of period | 2,495.3 | 2,875.9 | |||||
| CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS-End of period | $ | 3,750.6 | $ | 1,995.7 |
| Reconciliations of non-GAAP results of operations measures to the nearest comparable GAAP measures (Unaudited, in millions, except per share amounts) |
Reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP gross profit, gross margin, operating income, operating margin, net income and diluted net income per share
| Three Months Ended | |||||||
| September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | ||||||
| Revenue | $ | 2,078.4 | $ | 1,724.9 | |||
| Reconciliation of non-GAAP gross profit: | |||||||
| GAAP gross profit | $ | 1,640.9 | $ | 1,393.2 | |||
| GAAP gross margin | 79.0 | % | 80.8 | % | |||
| Add back: | |||||||
| Stock‐based compensation | 8.6 | 7.5 | |||||
| Amortization of acquired intangible assets | 5.9 | 7.2 | |||||
| Non‐GAAP gross profit | $ | 1,655.4 | $ | 1,407.9 | |||
| Non‐GAAP gross margin | 79.6 | % | 81.6 | % | |||
| Reconciliation of non-GAAP operating income: | |||||||
| GAAP operating income | $ | 704.3 | $ | 547.3 | |||
| GAAP operating margin | 33.9 | % | 31.7 | % | |||
| Add back: | |||||||
| Stock‐based compensation | 82.0 | 72.2 | |||||
| Amortization of acquired intangible assets | 8.9 | 13.1 | |||||
| Litigation related matters | - | 5.6 | |||||
| Gain on intellectual property matters | (1.4 | ) | (1.4 | ) | |||
| Non‐GAAP operating income | $ | 793.8 | $ | 636.8 | |||
| Non‐GAAP operating margin | 38.2 | % | 36.9 | % | |||
| Reconciliation of non-GAAP net income: | |||||||
| GAAP net income | $ | 635.5 | $ | 473.9 | |||
| Add back: | |||||||
| Stock‐based compensation | 82.0 | 72.2 | |||||
| Amortization of acquired intangible assets | 8.9 | 13.1 | |||||
| Litigation related matters | - | 5.6 | |||||
| Gain on intellectual property matters | (1.4 | ) | (1.4 | ) | |||
| Gain from escrow settlement (a) | (17.0 | ) | - | ||||
| Tax adjustment (b) | (29.4 | ) | (2.4 | ) | |||
| Non-GAAP net income | $ | 678.6 | $ | 561.0 | |||
| Reconciliation of non-GAAP net income per share, diluted | |||||||
| GAAP net income per share, diluted | $ | 0.86 | $ | 0.62 | |||
| Add back: | |||||||
| Non-GAAP adjustments to net income per share | 0.05 | 0.12 | |||||
| Non-GAAP net income per share, diluted | $ | 0.91 | $ | 0.74 | |||
| Shares used in diluted net income per share calculations | 742.6 | 761.2 | |||||
(a) To exclude a $17.0 million gain from the escrow settlement related to a prior business combination in the three months ended September 30, 2026.
(b) Non-GAAP financial information is adjusted to an effective tax rate of 18% in each period for the three months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025, on a non-GAAP basis, which differs from the GAAP effective tax rate.
Reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities to adjusted free cash flow
| Three Months Ended | |||||||
| September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | ||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 946.0 | $ | 655.2 | |||
| Less: Purchases of property and equipment | (64.2 | ) | (87.7 | ) | |||
| Less: Proceeds from escrow settlement | (17.0 | ) | - | ||||
| Free cash flow | $ | 864.8 | $ | 567.5 | |||
| Add: Real estate related purchases | 47.4 | 78.4 | |||||
| Adjusted free cash flow | $ | 912.2 | $ | 645.9 | |||
| Free cash flow margin | 41.6 | % | 32.9 | % | |||
| Adjusted free cash flow margin | 43.9 | % | 37.4 | % | |||
| Net cash used in investing activities | $ | (112.1 | ) | $ | (175.8 | ) | |
| Net cash used in financing activities | $ | (18.2 | ) | $ | (1,851.9 | ) | |
Reconciliation of total revenue to total billings
| Three Months Ended | ||||||
| September 30, 2026 | September 30, 2025 | |||||
| Total revenue | $ | 2,078.4 | $ | 1,724.9 | ||
| Add: Change in deferred revenue | 258.7 | 82.8 | ||||
| Less: Deferred revenue balance acquired in business combination | (0.8 | ) | - | |||
| Total billings | $ | 2,336.3 | $ | 1,807.7 | ||
1A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures has been provided in the financial statement tables included in this press release. An explanation of these measures is also included below under the heading“Explanation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures”.
Explanation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We have provided in this release financial information that has not been prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”). These non-GAAP financial and liquidity measures are not based on any standardized methodology prescribed by GAAP and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. We use these non-GAAP financial measures internally in analyzing our financial results and believe they are useful to investors, as a supplement to GAAP measures, in evaluating our ongoing operational performance. We believe that the use of these non-GAAP financial measures provides an additional tool for investors to use in evaluating ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing our financial results with peer companies, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures to investors.
Non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures provided in the financial statement tables below.
Billings (non-GAAP). We define billings as revenue recognized in accordance with GAAP plus the change in deferred revenue from the beginning to the end of the period less any deferred revenue balances acquired from business combination(s) during the period. We consider billings to be a useful metric for management and investors because billings drive current and future revenue as well as cash flows. There are a number of limitations related to the use of billings instead of GAAP revenue. First, billings are impacted by the term of security subscription and support agreements and do not provide an indication as to the timing of revenue being recognized from these service contracts. Second, we may calculate billings in a manner that is different from peer companies that report similar financial measures. Management accounts for these limitations by providing specific information regarding GAAP revenue and evaluating billings together with GAAP revenue.
Free cash flow (non-GAAP). We define free cash flow as net cash provided by operating activities minus purchases of property and equipment and excluding any significant non-recurring items, such as proceeds from escrow settlements. Free cash flow margin is defined as free cash flow divided by GAAP revenue. We believe free cash flow to be a liquidity measure that provides useful information to management and investors about the amount of cash generated by the business that, after capital expenditures, can be used for strategic opportunities, including repurchasing outstanding common stock, investing in our business, making strategic acquisitions and strengthening the balance sheet. A limitation of using free cash flow rather than the GAAP measures of cash provided by or used in operating activities, investing activities, and financing activities is that free cash flow does not represent the total increase or decrease in the cash and cash equivalents balance for the period because it excludes investing activities other than capital expenditures and cash flows from financing activities. Management accounts for this limitation by providing information about our capital expenditures and other investing and financing activities on the face of the cash flow statement and under the caption“Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations-Liquidity and Capital Resources” in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K and by presenting cash flows from investing and financing activities in our reconciliation of free cash flow. In addition, it is important to note that other companies, including companies in our industry, may not use free cash flow, may calculate free cash flow in a different manner than we do or may use other financial measures to evaluate their performance, all of which could reduce the usefulness of free cash flow as a comparative measure.
Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP). We define adjusted free cash flow as free cash flow plus cash payments associated with real estate related purchases. Adjusted free cash flow margin is defined as adjusted free cash flow divided by GAAP revenue.
Non-GAAP gross profit and gross margin. We define non-GAAP gross profit as gross profit plus stock-based compensation and amortization of acquired intangible assets. Non-GAAP gross margin is defined as non-GAAP gross profit divided by GAAP revenue.
Non-GAAP operating income and operating margin. We define non-GAAP operating income as operating income plus stock-based compensation and amortization of acquired intangible assets, and charges in connection with litigation settlements, less gain on intellectual property matters and, when applicable, other significant non-recurring items in a given quarter. Non-GAAP operating margin is defined as non-GAAP operating income divided by GAAP revenue.
We consider these non-GAAP financial measures to be useful metrics for management and investors because they exclude the items noted above so that our management and investors can compare our recurring core business gross profit, gross margin and operating results over multiple periods. There are a number of limitations related to the use of non-GAAP financial measurements instead of the measurements calculated in accordance with GAAP. First, these non-GAAP financial measures exclude the items noted above. Second, the components of the costs and gains that we exclude from our calculation of non-GAAP measures may differ from the components that peer companies exclude when they report their non-GAAP results of operations. Management accounts for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP amounts excluded from non-GAAP financial measures and evaluating non-GAAP operating income together with these measures calculated in accordance with GAAP.
Non-GAAP net income and diluted net income per share. We define non-GAAP net income as net income plus the items noted above under non-GAAP operating income and operating margin. In addition, we adjust non-GAAP net income and diluted net income per share for a gain from an escrow settlement and a tax adjustment required for an effective tax rate on a non-GAAP basis, which differs from the GAAP effective tax rate. We define non-GAAP diluted net income per share as non-GAAP net income divided by the diluted weighted-average shares outstanding. We consider these non-GAAP financial measures to be useful metrics for management and investors for the same reasons that we use non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin. However, in order to provide a more complete picture of our recurring core business operating results, we include in non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share, the tax adjustment required resulting in an effective tax rate on a non-GAAP basis, which often differs from the GAAP tax rate. We believe the non-GAAP effective tax rates we use are reasonable estimates of normalized tax rates for our current and prior fiscal years under our global operating structure. The same limitations described above regarding our use of non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin apply to our use of non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share. We account for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP amounts excluded from non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share and evaluating non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share together with net income and diluted net income per share calculated in accordance with GAAP.
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FTNT-F
Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Hybrid Mesh Firewall, Rajpreet Kaur, Adam Hils, Odie Adesina, 7 September 2026.
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| Investor Contact: | Media Contact: |
| Anthony Luscri | Stephanie Lira |
| Fortinet, Inc. | Fortinet, Inc. |
| 408-235-7700 | 408-235-7700 |
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