As the Q4 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the cybersecurity industry, including Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) and its peers.

Cybersecurity continues to be one of the fastest-growing segments within software for good reason. Almost every company is slowly finding itself becoming a technology company and facing rising cybersecurity risks. Businesses are accelerating adoption of cloud-based software, moving data and applications into the cloud to save costs while improving performance. This migration has opened them to a multitude of new threats, like employees accessing data via their smartphone while on an open network, or logging into a web-based interface from a laptop in a new location.

The 9 cybersecurity stocks we track reported a mixed Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.5% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 6.6% since the latest earnings results.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW)

Founded in 2005 by security visionary Nir Zuk who sought to reimagine firewall technology, Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) provides AI-powered cybersecurity platforms that protect organizations' networks, clouds, and endpoints from sophisticated threats.

Palo Alto Networks reported revenues of $2.59 billion, up 14.9% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, and overall, it was a strong quarter for the company with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and revenue guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations.

Palo Alto Networks pulled off the highest full-year guidance raise of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 2.2% since reporting and currently trades at $167.15.

Is now the time to buy Palo Alto Networks? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q4: CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD)

Known for detecting the massive SolarWinds hack in 2020 that compromised numerous government agencies, CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD) provides cloud-based cybersecurity solutions that protect endpoints, cloud workloads, identity, and data through its Falcon platform.

CrowdStrike reported revenues of $1.31 billion, up 23.3% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 0.6%. The business had a strong quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ billings estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 8.3% since reporting. It currently trades at $423.85.

Is now the time to buy CrowdStrike? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Rapid7 (NASDAQ: RPD)

With its name inspired by the need for quick responses to cyber threats, Rapid7 (NASDAQ: RPD) provides cybersecurity software and services that help organizations detect vulnerabilities, monitor threats, and respond to security incidents.

Rapid7 reported revenues of $217.4 million, flat year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 1.2%. Still, it was a softer quarter as it posted full-year guidance of slowing revenue growth and full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Rapid7 delivered the slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 39.1% since the results and currently trades at $6.33.

Read our full analysis of Rapid7’s results here.

Varonis Systems (NASDAQ: VRNS)

Beginning with protecting Windows file shares in 2005 and evolving into a comprehensive security platform, Varonis Systems (NASDAQ: VRNS) provides data security software that helps organizations protect sensitive information, detect threats, and comply with privacy regulations.

Varonis Systems reported revenues of $173.4 million, up 9.4% year on year. This result topped analysts’ expectations by 3.1%. Zooming out, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ billings estimates but full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

The stock is down 9.3% since reporting and currently trades at $24.07.

Read our full, actionable report on Varonis Systems here, it’s free.

Qualys (NASDAQ: QLYS)

Originally developed to address the growing complexity of IT security in the cloud era, Qualys (NASDAQ: QLYS) provides a cloud-based platform that helps organizations identify, manage, and protect their IT assets from cyber threats across on-premises, cloud, and mobile environments.

Qualys reported revenues of $175.3 million, up 10.1% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.2%. More broadly, it was a mixed quarter as it also produced an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but full-year EPS guidance slightly missing analysts’ expectations.

The stock is down 25.7% since reporting and currently trades at $94.99.

Read our full, actionable report on Qualys here, it’s free.

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