Want to see FFIV full AI Analyst Report?
Top Page
F5, Inc.
(NASDAQ:FFIV)
Select Model
Select Model
Rating:80Outperform
Price Target:
$531.00
▲(38.73% Upside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:07/28/26
FFIV scores well primarily on strong financial performance (high margins, strong free cash flow, and low leverage) and a positive earnings-call setup with raised guidance and ongoing buybacks. Offsetting factors are a relatively high P/E with no dividend yield support and only moderate/uncertain near-term technical momentum based on moving averages alone.
Positive Factors
Recurring Revenue Base
A high recurring-revenue contribution and expanding deferred revenue provide visibility into future sales and support customer retention. This mix can make cash flows more resilient while subscription adoption deepens F5’s ongoing relationship with enterprise and public-sector users.
Negative Factors
Mature Growth Profile
Although recent growth has improved, the multi-year record reflects a mature business with less consistent expansion than a high-growth software company. A slower underlying trajectory can limit operating leverage from future scale and makes sustained execution important to preserve earnings momentum.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Recurring Revenue Base
A high recurring-revenue contribution and expanding deferred revenue provide visibility into future sales and support customer retention. This mix can make cash flows more resilient while subscription adoption deepens F5’s ongoing relationship with enterprise and public-sector users.
Read all positive factors
F5, Inc. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Any
Revenue by Segment
Breaks down revenue across different business units, highlighting which segments drive growth and profitability, and where strategic focus may be needed.
Breaks down revenue across different business units, highlighting which segments drive growth and profitability, and where strategic focus may be needed.
Data provided by:
The Fly
F5, Inc. (FFIV) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$27.17B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)516.65K
Price to Earnings (P/E)37.9
Beta (1Y)0.81
Revenue Growth9.41%
EPS Growth10.59%
CountryUS
Employees6,545
SectorTechnology
Sector Strength88
IndustrySoftware - Infrastructure
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)12.70
Shares Outstanding56,627,182
10 Day Avg. Volume503,933
30 Day Avg. Volume516,649
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio1.13
Price to Book (P/B)5.21
Price to Sales (P/S)6.06
P/FCF Ratio20.65
Enterprise Value/Market Cap0.83
Enterprise Value/Revenue6.82
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit8.30
Enterprise Value/Ebitda23.94
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$428.00Price Target Upside11.82% Upside
Rating ConsensusHold
Number of Analyst Covering9
EPS Forecast (FY)18.03
Revenue Forecast (FY)$3.53B
F5, Inc. Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
F5, Inc. is a technology company specializing in comprehensive solutions designed to secure and optimize the delivery of applications across various cloud environments. Their core mission is to guarantee the security, peak performance, and constan...
How the Company Makes Money
F5 primarily makes money by selling (1) software and cloud subscriptions and (2) support and professional services, with additional revenue from product systems. Key revenue streams typically include: (a) Subscription revenue: Customers pay recurr...
F5, Inc. Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Jul 27, 2026
(Q3-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Oct 27, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed strong operational execution and robust top-line performance, led by 19% product growth and 32% systems growth, healthy profitability (non-GAAP margins and 14% EPS growth), raised full-year guidance, significant AI momentum (50% growth in direct AI customers, 100% in AI security customers) and solid cash generation. Headwinds were limited to an APAC revenue decline, softer software growth due to a prior weak renewal cohort, a small decline in perpetual licenses, and reserved caution on FY2027 gross margins due to component-price volatility. On balance the positive metrics, guidance raise, product momentum and cash strength outweigh the contained operational risks.Positive Updates
Strong Overall Revenue Growth
Total revenue grew 11% year-over-year to $865 million in Q3 FY2026, above the top end of guidance. Company raised full-year FY2026 revenue outlook to ~9%–10% growth (up from 7%–8%) and provided Q4 revenue guidance of $870M–$890M (~just under 9% YoY at midpoint).
Negative Updates
APAC Revenue Decline
APAC revenue decreased 11% YoY in Q3 and represented 15% of total revenue. Management indicated this decline is against a strong prior-year period and underlying demand remains healthy, but region was a notable weakness in reported results.
Read all updates
Q3-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Strong Overall Revenue Growth
Total revenue grew 11% year-over-year to $865 million in Q3 FY2026, above the top end of guidance. Company raised full-year FY2026 revenue outlook to ~9%–10% growth (up from 7%–8%) and provided Q4 revenue guidance of $870M–$890M (~just under 9% YoY at midpoint).
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
F5 guided Q4 revenue of $870–$890 million (about just under 9% year‑over‑year at the midpoint) with Q4 non‑GAAP gross margin of 83%–84%, non‑GAAP operating expenses of $430–$442 million, share‑based compensation of ~$68–$70 million, and Q4 non‑GAAP EPS of $4.14–$4.26. For full‑year FY‑2026 they raised revenue growth to ~9%–10% (from 7%–8%), expect FY‑26 non‑GAAP gross margin of 83.5%–84% and non‑GAAP operating margin of 34.5%–35.5%, a non‑GAAP effective tax rate of 18%–19%, and non‑GAAP EPS of $17.21–$17.33 (up from $16.25–$16.55); they also reiterated mid‑single‑digit software growth, double‑digit systems growth and low‑single‑digit services growth for the year, left FY‑27 gross‑margin guidance at 80%–82%, and said they expect to repurchase at least 50% of free cash flow.F5, Inc. Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
86
Very Positive
Balance Sheet
90
Very Positive
Cash Flow
88
Very Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Sep 2025 | Sep 2024 | Sep 2023 | Sep 2022 | Sep 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 3.31B | 3.09B | 2.82B | 2.81B | 2.70B | 2.60B |
| Gross Profit | 2.72B | 2.51B | 2.26B | 2.22B | 2.16B | 2.11B |
| EBITDA | 943.49M | 883.83M | 774.24M | 650.66M | 527.31M | 502.36M |
| Net Income | 726.51M | 692.38M | 566.78M | 394.95M | 322.16M | 331.24M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 6.83B | 6.32B | 5.61B | 5.25B | 5.28B | 5.00B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 1.61B | 1.34B | 1.07B | 803.32M | 884.57M | 910.61M |
| Total Debt | 252.38M | 492.54M | 465.35M | 520.55M | 937.05M | 1.01B |
| Total Liabilities | 2.97B | 2.73B | 2.48B | 2.45B | 2.81B | 2.64B |
| Stockholders Equity | 3.86B | 3.59B | 3.13B | 2.80B | 2.47B | 2.36B |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 969.60M | 906.41M | 762.01M | 599.23M | 409.01M | 614.54M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 1.05B | 949.67M | 792.42M | 653.41M | 442.63M | 645.20M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -278.00M | -219.49M | -59.21M | 36.39M | 218.12M | -445.33M |
| Financing Cash Flow | -591.33M | -464.81M | -457.00M | -653.30M | -476.51M | -468.28M |
F5, Inc. Technical Analysis
Positive
382.75
Price Trends
418.55
Positive
409.59
Positive
350.30
Positive
Market Momentum
15.28
Negative
70.01
Negative
85.90
Negative
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For FFIV, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 382.75 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 446.73, below the 50-day MA of 418.55, and above the 200-day MA of 350.30, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 15.28 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 70.01 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 85.90 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for FFIV.
F5, Inc. Risk Analysis
F5, Inc. disclosed 41 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. F5, Inc. reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
F5, Inc. Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (61)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
80 Outperform | $27.17B | 37.92 | 19.86% | ― | 9.41% | 10.59% | |
78 Outperform | $142.89B | 68.09 | 187.95% | ― | 18.77% | 12.93% | |
67 Neutral | $2.15B | 49.04 | 19.61% | 0.81% | 12.20% | -13.97% | |
66 Neutral | $128.52B | -620.67 | -13.86% | ― | 33.53% | -72.17% | |
65 Neutral | $1.30B | 78.87 | 5.05% | ― | 9.98% | 18.53% | |
64 Neutral | $15.37B | 37.97 | 8.49% | ― | 5.87% | -0.31% | |
61 Neutral | $37.18B | 12.37 | -10.20% | 1.83% | 8.50% | -7.62% |
* Technology Sector Average
FFIV
F5, Inc.
479.83
139.19
40.86%
AKAM
Akamai
106.95
33.15
44.92%
FTNT
Fortinet
194.75
110.55
131.29%
RDWR
Radware
30.98
5.05
19.48%
ATEN
A10 Networks
29.63
11.96
67.69%
NET
Cloudflare
360.93
138.37
62.17%
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.