Pure-Play Cyber Security Software Stocks Portfolio Down 12.5% In July; CrowdStrike Down 39% -

Pure-Play Cyber Security Software Stocks Portfolio Down 12.5% In July; CrowdStrike Down 39%

Jul 31, 2024Jeremy ParkinsonFinance0

Image Source: Pixabay

An Introduction
With cybercrime damage reported (see here) to possibly reach $10.29 trillion by 2025 sophisticated cyber security is crucial to protect networks, systems and other digital infrastructure from malicious attacks (see here). It is estimated that cyber security spending was only $188B in 2023 and, with research (source) forecasting that corporate spending on cybersecurity should grow at a CAGR of 13.8% between now and 2030 (source) it suggests that a $2 trillion market exists for cyber security technology and service providers.

What is a Cyber Attack?
Simply put, as you may well know, a cyber attack is any malicious attack on a computer system, network, or device to gain access and information. They take many forms, such as:

malware which is malicious software, including spyware, ransomware, and viruses. that accesses a network through a weakness such as a fraudulent link or email attachment;

phishing which involves a fraudulent message that appears to come from a legitimate source through email, text, or social networks with the goal is to steal information by installing malware or by cajoling the victim into divulging personal details;

man-in-the-middle which involves an attacker coming between two members of a transaction to eavesdrop on personal information;

denial-of-service which involves flooding systems with traffic to clog up bandwidth so they can’t fulfill legitimate requests and, thereby, shut down systems, and

password attacks involve stealing passwords.

Defining Pure-Play Companies
As the word conveys, pure-play companies concentrate all their efforts on a single line of business and, of the 63 cybersecurity companies in the sector (see here) only 7 are publicly traded pure-play companies.

The Pure-Play CyberSecurity Software Stocks Portfolio
Shares of the 7 stocks in munKNEE’s Pure-Play CyberSecurity Software Stocks Portfolio plummeted 12.5% in July primarily due to the weakness in the stock of cybersecurity software provider CrowdStrike (CRWD), a Portfolio constituent, which was DOWN 38.8% in large part as the result of a defective update being sent out on July 19th by the company that caused a global IT outage for Microsoft Windows hosts. (Read: How the world’s tech crashed all at once)Below are how the 7 constituents performed in July (as of mid-day July 31st), in descending order, and YTD along with their market capitalization, and the most recent news, analyses and commentary on some of them.

Check Point Software Technologies (CHKP): UP 11.6% in July; UP 20.5% YTD

Market Capitalization: $20B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Check Point Software Announces New CEO & Reports Strong 2024 Second Quarter Results
- Check Point Software Technologies Stock Outpacing Its Computer and Technology Peers

Tenable Holdings (TENB): UP 6.1% in July; UP 0.5% YTD

Market Capitalization: $6B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Cybersecurity company Tenable reportedly exploring potential sale
- Tenable Reports Q2 Earnings Today: What To Look For

Gen Digital (GEN): UP 4.3% in July; UP 14.2% YTD

Market Capitalization: $16B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Gen Digital to Report Q1 Earnings Tomorrow: What’s in the Cards?

Fortinet (FTNT): DOWN 2.2% in July; UP 0.7% YTD

Market Capitalization: $45B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Will Fortinet (FTNT) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW): DOWN 4.0% in July; UP 10.4% YTD

Market Capitalization: $105B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Why Hedge Funds Are Bullish on Palo Alto Networks
- Palo Alto Networks Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Zscaler (ZS): DOWN 5.8% in July; DOWN 18.3% YTD

Market Capitalization: $27B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Here’s Why Zscaler Stock Was Down 13% in the First Half of 2024
- Zscaler Could Be a Great Addition to Your Portfolio; Here’s Why

CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD): DOWN 38.8% in July; DOWN 8.2% YTD

Market Capitalization: $57B
Most Recent News, Analyses, and Commentary:
- Investors With Large Losses in CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. Should Contact Bernstein Liebhard LLP To Discuss Their Rights
- CrowdStrike shares plunge on report that Delta may seek damages

Summary
On average, the above 7 pure-play cybersecurity software stocks were DOWN 12.5% in July but remain UP 3.4% YTD.

Cybersecurity ETF
Investing in a basket of cyber security stocks is a quick and easy way to get investment portfolio exposure to this critical segment of the tech sector. The Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG), for example, consists of 31 stocks and has an expense ratio of 0.51%.Please note: Comment on this article and be automatically entered in TalkMarkets’ contest (register here) to possibly win an Amazon Echo Show device (retail value of $229) and engage directly with me and other commentators.More By This Author:Tilray Q4 Financial Results Reveal Dramatic Reduction In Net Loss
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