FTNT is overvalued; it is too late to buy and existing holders should consider reducing stakes or selling covered calls.

For years, I have been speaking very enthusiastically about the buying opportunity available in Fortinet shares. In fact, in 2024, Fortinet was ranked as one of the best stocks you could buy that year.

Therefore, I am very pleased to see the stock price performance in 2026 with Fortinet stock rising by more than 121%. But now investors are asking me, is there still a buying opportunity or is it too late to buy Fortinet stock?

Fortinet is one of the largest cybersecurity companies when measured by revenue over the past 12 months, coming in just behind Palo Alto Networks, with revenues exceeding $7.5 billion.

This represents an almost 5-fold increase in the past decade from $1.5 billion in 2017. Moreover, the proliferation of AI proxies has accelerated revenue growth and this trend is likely to continue for the next few years.

Fortinet benefits from the increase in proxy actions that create growing demand from companies to secure their data, networks, and customer information. What impressed me about Fortinet, besides its revenue growth, was its continued expansion in operating profitability.

Its operating profit margin reached record highs of 32.4% over the past 12 months, up from 2.5% in 2017.

Compared to Palo Alto Networks, its operating profit margin has continued to rise as its revenues have recently increased, whereas Palo Alto Networks' operating profit margin is actually declining.

Returns on invested capital are also booming at 99.8%. I don't think this level is sustainable, but it could probably last for a few more years. In the long run, a return on invested capital of around 40% would be excellent for shareholders.

Fortinet's average weighted cost of capital is around 10 to 12%, so a 99% return on invested capital is roughly 10 times the average weighted cost of capital, which is among the very best of all the companies I follow in this value comparison.

Fortinnet has done well here, with revenue per employee up by nearly 50% compared to 2017. This is evidence of their integration of artificial intelligence with the upward growth curve since 2024.

I would like to see more progress in this regard from Fortinnet and many of the companies I follow in general. Now, with the significant increase in the share price in 2026, the valuation has also increased.

One of the reasons for my great optimism about Fortnite in recent years has been the very attractive valuation. This valuation has risen significantly, more than doubling here in 2026.

At the beginning of the year, the stock was trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of around 20, and now it is trading at more than 46. This is the highest price level the stock has reached in several years.

While business growth is accelerating, the stock price surge preceded improvements in the company's fundamentals, with investors expecting continued prosperity for Fortinet and the cybersecurity sector as a whole.

I have also updated my assessment using a discounted cash flow model, and Fortnite stock appears similarly overpriced. I calculated the fair value of the company at $97 per share compared to the current market price of $175.

This is far beyond my safety margin, as the gap between market price and fair value exceeds 45%. So, to update the answer to my question in the title, I really think it's too late to buy Fortnite stock.

I think if you are watching from the outside and waiting to buy Fortnite stock, it is better to wait for a better buying opportunity. In fact, if I owned Fortnite stock right now, I would consider reducing my stake or selling covered call options at price levels that were 10 or 20% higher than the current market price.