CrowdStrike (CRWD) shares rose about 3% early Monday as more analysts continued to back the cybersecurity firm amid renewed fears of artificial intelligence disruption to the industry.
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Anthropic’s Upcoming Model Sparks New AI Fears
Wolfe Research’s five-star analyst Alex Zukin backed the company despite noting that AI startup Anthropic’s upcoming model “has the potential to ignite a machine-speed cyberwar the likes of which we have never seen.” Zukin elevated CRWD from Peer Perform (Hold) to Outperform (Buy) and set a price target of $450, implying about 22% upside.
The analyst’s comment comes days after Anthropic’s new model tailored for cybersecurity leaked to the media, fueling a new round of AI jitters that sank cybersecurity stocks such as Palo Alto Networks (PANW) and Zscaler (ZS) on Friday.
According to media reports, Anthropic is working on a new system called the Claude Mythos that could be its most powerful model yet. CrowdStrike’s shares also shuddered last week following reports that e-commerce giant Amazon (AMZN) is also working on an in-house AI agent to oversee sales and business development tasks. CrowdStrike serves as a cybersecurity partner to Amazon’s Business Prime customers.
Wolfe Flags Revenue Acceleration for CrowdStrike
However, Zukin only sees upside for CrowdStrike from the development. He believes it could force customers to focus on a smaller group of cybersecurity software companies, driving more vendor consolidation.
The Wolfe analyst also contended that this could help CrowdStrike rapidly expand its annual recurring revenue in fiscal 2027. Zukin’s comment emphasizes a sentiment that has also been shared by several other analysts on Wall Street.
For instance, BTIG last week dismissed media framing of the new Anthropic model as risking a new “arms race” as “completely wrong.” The financial services firm argued that the risk of AI heightens cyber risks that would drive more demand to vendors.
Is CrowdStrike a Buy or Sell?
Across Wall Street, CrowdStrike’s shares remain a Strong Buy based on analysts’ consensus rating. This breaks down to 28 Buys and nine Holds issued over the past three months.
In addition, the average CRWD price target of $483.32 implies about 27% upside from current trading levels.
