CrowdStrike and Okta surge on earnings as AI threats boost cybersecurity spending

Aug 26, 2026

CrowdStrike and Okta shares surged 18% and 27% respectively after both companies beat fiscal second-quarter estimates and raised their full-year forecasts. Executives attribute the growth to an AI arms race, where advanced models like Anthropic's Mythos and high-profile hacks are forcing enterprises to scale up security. The strong results triggered a broader cybersecurity rally, lifting peers like Palo Alto Networks and Zscaler by over 10%.

CrowdStrike Q2 earnings beat

▪CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. raised its full-year revenue forecast to between $5.99 billion and $6.01 billion, up from its previous projection of $5.91 billion to $5.96 billion
▪CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. posted adjusted earnings of 31 cents per share for the fiscal second quarter, surpassing analyst expectations of 29 cents per share
▪CrowdStrike Holdings Inc.'s annual recurring revenue reached $5.84 billion at the end of the fiscal second quarter, representing a 25% increase year over year
▪CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. reported fiscal second-quarter revenue of $1.47 billion, beating Wall Street's average estimate of $1.44 billion

Okta Q2 earnings beat

▪Okta, Inc.'s subscription backlog, or remaining performance obligations, rose 17% year over year to $4.86 billion, beating analyst estimates of $4.70 billion
▪Okta, Inc. raised its full-year revenue forecast to a range of $3.22 billion to $3.23 billion, up from its previous guidance of $3.19 billion to $3.21 billion
▪Okta, Inc. reported fiscal second-quarter revenue of $805 million, beating Wall Street estimates of $795 million and representing an 11% increase year over year
▪Okta, Inc. posted adjusted earnings of $1.05 per share for the fiscal second quarter, beating the 97 cents per share expected by analysts

AI-driven cybersecurity spending surge

▪Recent cybersecurity testing and incidents, including the OpenAI-Hugging Face hack, have highlighted the hacking risks posed by capable artificial intelligence agents
▪The release of advanced artificial intelligence models, such as Anthropic's Mythos, has driven corporate demand for cybersecurity tools to defend against AI-orchestrated attacks
▪CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. reported that its Falcon Flex platform offering, which allows customers to deploy and swap different security tools, more than doubled year over year

Identity security market growth

▪Okta, Inc. reported that new products accounted for nearly 30% of its total bookings during the fiscal second quarter, driven by dozens of artificial intelligence deals
▪Okta, Inc. made its Okta for AI Agents tool, designed to manage and secure artificial intelligence identities, generally available to all customers during the fiscal second quarter
▪Okta, Inc. closed its acquisition of threat detection startup Permiso Security on August 26, 2026, in a transaction valued at approximately $200 million

Cybersecurity sector stock rally

▪Bank of America upgraded Okta, Inc. shares to neutral from underperform, citing accelerating artificial intelligence growth, but warned that near-term financial impacts remain limited
▪Following their earnings reports on August 26, 2026, Okta, Inc. shares surged 27% and CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. shares gained 18% in Thursday trading
▪The broader cybersecurity sector rallied on August 27, 2026, with shares of Palo Alto Networks, SailPoint, Zscaler, and Rubrik rising at least 10% each