Street research adopts our long-held view on AI and cybersecurity stocks
Wall Street is touting one of our long-held views: AI represents a tailwind —not a headwind — for CrowdStrike and cybersecurity stocks. Shares of CrowdStrike rose 1.6% Monday after receiving a pair of bullish analyst calls. Mizuho upgraded the stock to outperform from neutral while upping its price target to $520 from $490, saying recent channel checks showed “very healthy demand” across the platform and that CrowdStrike has “arguably the strongest set of offerings” in AI security. Separately, JPMorgan highlighted CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks as “obvious beneficiaries” of the accelerating threat landscape tied to foundation models and agentic AI. The firm said platform vendors with proprietary data and deep domain expertise are well-positioned to protect companies as AI expands the range of threats across identity and cloud environments. The Club owns CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks, but has a 3 rating for the latter, meaning we’re looking to sell the stock into strength. Jim Cramer decided that we only need one cybersecurity name in the portfolio and wants to make room for another. We sold some Palo Alto shares on Monday. CrowdStrike has a 1 rating. The positive notes matter because CrowdStrike and Palo Alto have been swept up in the broader sell-off in software stocks this year amid worries that AI will steal market share. The pair makes up more than 10% of the IGV tech software ETF , which is down 20% in 2026. But the stocks’ recent rebound suggests investors are starting to recognize the opposite: more capable AI systems will require greater security. Shares of CrowdStrike are up more than 22% over this past month, though still down 3.3% year-to-date. Palo Alto stock has also recovered over the same period, up nearly 24% but down 1% for the year. CRWD YTD mountain CRWD stock performance YTD. “What I really like about CrowdStrike is that it has tried and may be breaking out of the IGV, which has been such a problem for them,” Jim Cramer said Monday during the Morning Meeting . When the stock was under $400 earlier this year, Cramer predicted that AI would benefit CrowdStrike, which is why we remained bullish even as the stock was punished. More analysts on Wall Street are starting to push that idea. Mizuho pointed to several company-specific positives, including Falcon Flex, a subscription offering for enterprise customers that provides easy access to CrowdStrike’s cybersecurity tools. Analysts also highlighted the demand momentum from the hyperscalers and emerging AI security initiatives that could help CrowdStrike exceed its fiscal 2027 annual recurring revenue targets. Another key catalyst is Project Glasswing , Anthropic’s cybersecurity coalition built around its unreleased Claude Mythos model. CrowdStrike and Palo Alto were the only two pure-play cybersecurity companies named as partners, a “true testament to both platforms,” Mizuho said. The firm added that there’s a “legitimate possibility that Project Glasswing will catalyze good incremental business activity for CRWD over time.” Analysts also said the stock’s valuation looks more attractive after multiple compressions over the past six months. “There’s a sense that Anthropic has something that would make it so you don’t need them [CrowdStrike],” Jim said. “It’s the opposite, Anthropic needs them.” CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz made a similar case on “Mad Money” after Mythos was unveiled. “You can’t have AI without security,” Kurtz said, adding, “We’re the experts at it.” One of the things that’s holding back AI adoption is AI securitization, Kurtz explained, which is why CrowdStrike was chosen to be part of the solution in the Mythos partnership. “Security is going to be an accelerant to rolling out AI,” Kurtz said. He explained that advanced AI leads to a higher volume of attacks and less time to address them, as it makes security vulnerabilities more accessible. Kurtz continued that finding vulnerabilities is very different from protecting against breaches. Customers are paying for outcomes of not being breached, not just paying for finding vulnerabilities, and CrowdStrike provides that security end-to-end. (Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust is long CRWD, PANW. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
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