Okta (OKTA) Ascends But Remains Behind Market: Some Facts to Note

Okta (OKTA) closed the most recent trading day at $88.32, moving +1.02% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's 1.07% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 1.12%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 1.37%. The cloud identity management company's stock has dropped by 6.36% in the past month, falling short of the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 2.68% and the S&P 500's gain of 1.08%.The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Okta in its upcoming release. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $0.75, marking a 11.94% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $729.17 million, indicating a 9.65% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. In terms of the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates predict earnings of $3.37 per share and a revenue of $2.88 billion, indicating changes of +19.93% and +10.38%, respectively, from the former year. Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Okta. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability. Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system. The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained unchanged. Okta is currently a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Looking at valuation, Okta is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 25.94. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 68.44, which means Okta is trading at a discount to the group. It is also worth noting that OKTA currently has a PEG ratio of 1.49. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The average PEG ratio for the Security industry stood at 2.77 at the close of the market yesterday. The Security industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 191, finds itself in the bottom 23% echelons of all 250+ industries. The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1. Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com. #1 Semiconductor Stock to Buy (Not NVDA)The incredible demand for data is fueling the market's next digital gold rush. As data centers continue to be built and constantly upgraded, the companies that provide the hardware for these behemoths will become the NVIDIAs of tomorrow.One under-the-radar chipmaker is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the next growth stage of this market. It specializes in semiconductor products that titans like NVIDIA don't build. It's just beginning to enter the spotlight, which is exactly where you want to be.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Okta, Inc. (OKTA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks