In 2011 or thereabouts when everyone was terrified of hackers it was believed that as the net got to be more widely used companies which offered cybersecurity solutions would make a lot of money and because their services and products would always be needed anyone who bought cybersecurity stocks would profit from them. That changed this year though. Cybersecurity stocks plunged and it is believed that they no longer will be as they were in the past. Question: taking into account these developments, is it too late to buy some cybersecurity stocks?
What changed this year? The only company focusing only on cyber security that I've been keeping my eyes on is now around the same price is was in January, though it has been above that for most of the year. The first ETF that I could find (HACK) looks to be flat YTD after seeing a boost during the summer months. So what exactly plunged this year?
There were some interesting cyber-security IPOs this year. Rapid7 had a successful float, but I'm not sure what happened after that. I only know this because I had to write a lot of articles over the summer covering the major IPOs. I'd guess that the intellectual property in cyber-security would, like a lot of other things in computer tech, soon get swallowed up by the big companies, so being in early in those companies would seem to be the way to go.
I like Palo Alto and Cyberark. They are volatile though. I like to protect these with put options myself.
Cyber security may take a hit from time to time like other stocks but its not supposed to last. There is alot of cyber crime going on and hackers are determined and ever more sophisticated than before. In most cases, ethical hackers and cyber security professionals have to scramble from behind to establish an additional layer of encryption. It takes only one incident to penetrate their defences for the stocks to surge upwards. Even the pennystocks of such companies are a good bet.
Cybersecurity Stocks Could Present Opportunities for Investors With Strong Stomachs PureFunds Cyber Security ETF (HACK) has fallen 20%, compared to the 8% slide in the S&P 500 and a 6.5% dip in the Nasdaq. Over the previous six months, however, the ETF jumped 28%, compared to an 11% climb in the Nasdaq over the same period.
Whether we like it or not the Internet has changed life as we know it. The ability for hackers to get into our offices, our homes and our mobile devices will ensure cybersecurity companies will prosper in the future. Which ones will prosper, well that is the $6m question!
Re CYBR: Transaction Date Transaction Type Dividend Per Share Shares Transacted Share Price $ Split Ratio Commission $ Transaction Value $ Share Balance 6/27/2015 Buy 50.0000 65.7800 0.00 3,289.00 50.0000 12/15/2015 Buy 100.0000 42.0500 0.00 4,205.00 150.0000 2/8/2016 Buy 100.0000 36.6500 0.00 3,665.00 250.0000 2/12/2016 Buy 100.0000 32.4200 0.00 3,242.00 350.0000 5/12/2017 Sell 300.0000 49.5700 0.00 14,871.00 50.0000