Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on CRWD with a $265 price target and a "buy" rating
The shares of CrowdStrike Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:CRWD) are up 0.8% to trade at $210.10 this morning, after Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on the tech name with a "buy" rating and a $265 price target. The analyst noted that the firm was "in a sweet spot for two important secular trends of this decade; the rising importance of cybersecurity and cloud adoption," and added that the dollar flowing into the endpoint security is being underappreciated by investors.
The equity has made moves to overcome a choppy pullback from its Feb. 16 record peak at $251.28. The 160-day moving average provided a springboard for the equity's late-March trough, and CRWD just broke past pressure at the 90-day moving average, which could move in as an area of support in the coming weeks. Year-over-year, CRWD is up 240%, though it's still trading just below its year-to-date breakeven.
Analysts have been overwhelmingly optimistic on CrowdStrike stock. Of the 19 in coverage, 16 said "buy" or better coming into today. Plus, the 12-month consensus price target of $254.32 is a 21.5% premium to current levels, and represents what would be a fresh high for the security.
Option traders have also been much more bullish than usual. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the stock sports a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 2.71, which stands higher than 75% of readings from the past year.
Now looks like an opportune time to join these bullish bettors, too. The equity's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 44% stands higher than just 2% of readings from the past year, implying options traders are pricing in relatively low volatility expectations at the moment. What's more, CRWD's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) ranks at 98 out of a possible 100. This means the stock tends to exceed these volatility expectations -- a good thing for option buyers.