Both Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) and Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) are promising cybersecurity companies.
Palo Alto's stock has risen 240% while Fortinet's has risen 580%.
As a comparison, the Nasdaq Composite rose over 60% and the S&P 500 about 40%.
Investors were impressed by both companies' revenue growth and profits.
The cybersecurity market is also expected to grow 13.4% annually between 2022 and 2026, according to Fortune Business Insights.
Evergreen industry with macro headwinds that are unpredictable.
Both Palo Alto and Fortinet created next-generation firewalls by upgrading traditional versions.
Fortinet launched its first firewall, Fortigate, in 2002 & Palo Alto introduces it's first next-gen firewall Strata in 2022.
These next-generation firewalls allowed both companies to expand their ecosystems.
In fiscal 2022, Palo Alto's revenue rose 29% to $5.5 billion, while Fortigate rose 27% to $7.5 billion.
A 23% increase in adjusted earnings per share was attributed mostly to its next-generation security services, Prisma and Cortex.
Palo Alto still trades at 53 times forward earnings, while Fortinet trades at 38 times forward earnings.
Fortinet, however looks like a slightly better investment because it is growing faster, is trading at a lower multiple and is already firmly profitable.
As long as interest rates continue to rise, those strengths could make it a more attractive investment.