CrowdStrike shares rose due to 74% revenue growth and strong outlook

Company revenue growth

Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has reported a better end to the financial year 2021 and a better outlook for the next quarter and year than market analysts had expected.

Shares in CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD), which has risen almost five-fold in the past 12 months, were up nearly 6 per cent in after-hours trading on Tuesday on the back of the company's financial report release.

CrowdStrike shares hit a 52-week high price above $251 a month ago, but after falling almost 19% during the month, the share price was at $196.3 at the close of trading on Tuesday.

From the first day of trading on 12 June 2019 to Tuesday's close, CrowdStrike shares were up nearly 250%.

CrowdStrike is a global leader in cyber security providing cloud-based solutions for securing endpoints (servers, computers, smartphones, etc.) and cloud workloads. The company uses machine learning, a form of artificial intelligence and a specialised database to detect malware on laptops, mobile phones and other devices accessing corporate networks.

The CrowdStrike service is offered as a subscription-based service for both large and small businesses in a variety of sectors.

CrowdStrike report for the fourth quarter and full financial year 2021

CrowdStrike reported a profit of $0.13 per share for the 4th quarter ended 31 January 2021, in contrast to a loss of -$0.02 in the same quarter last year and earnings per share of $0.08 in the previous third quarter. The figure was also well above analysts' estimates of $0.08. The company reported net profit of $31.6m for the quarter, compared with a loss of $3.9m in the fourth quarter of FY 2020.

Revenues were up 74% year-on-year to $264.9 million, also above the average analyst expectation of $250.6 million.

CrowdStrike added 1,480 new subscribers in the fourth quarter, bringing its total to 9,896, up 82% from a year ago. For the full fiscal year 2021, CrowdStrike increased revenues by 82% to $874.4 million and posted a net profit of $62.6 million, with annual earnings per share of $0.27 compared to a loss of $0.42 in fiscal 2020.