Pullbacks to the 80-day moving average have boosted FTNT before
Fortinet Inc (NASDAQ:FTNT) stock is up 2% at $68.06 at last check, as it trades within one standard deviation of its 50-day moving average, a historically bullish trendline that has provided tailwinds in the past. The shares already boast a 16% lead for 2024, and could soon make another run at a ceiling at the $74 level.
Per Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White's data, the security saw at least two similar signals in the last three years, defined for this study as having traded north of this trendline 80% of the time over the last two months, and in eight of the last 10 trading days.
The security was higher one month later after 80% of these instances, averaging a 4% gain. A comparable move from its current perch would place FTNT just over the $70 mark.
Combined with a sentiment shift, it could be just what Fortinet stock needs to topple that aforementioned resistance level. The security's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.80 stands higher than 5% of annual readings, indicating short-term options traders have been learning bearish. Echoing this, 23 of the 35 analysts in coverage rate FTNT a "hold" or worse.
Options are reasonably priced at the moment, too. This is per the equity's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 33%, which ranks in the low 17th percentile of its annual range.