Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CHKP scored 60.5, FTNT scored 62.3 — FTNT leads.
Compare another set
CHKP
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.
Software - Infrastructure · Quality-Growth
60.5
$137.18 · $14.0B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
1.8
FTNT leads
FTNT
Fortinet, Inc.
Software - Infrastructure · Quality-Growth
62.3
$194.75 · $142.9B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestCHKP14.0x
Fastest growthFTNT+18.8%
Strongest balance sheetFTNT0.36
Highest qualityFTNT91 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueCHKP-18%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CHKP
stronger →← stronger
FTNT
88
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
91
48
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
90
52
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
29
FTNT is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CHKP
FTNT
$1.1bC+
FCF
$3.2bB
+6.3%C+
Rev
+18.8%B+
0.72C+
D/E
0.36B
14.0xA-
P/E
68.8xC
—
PEG
2.08C
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CHKP
FTNT
18% below
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
124% above
~0%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~33%/yr
+19%
1-yr DCF upside
-63%
+22%
5-yr DCF upside
-55%
+26%
10-yr DCF upside
-41%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CHKP
Why this score
Buying back stock
Durable high returns
FTNT
Why this score
Buying back stock
Durable high returns
The companies
CHKPCheck Point Software Technologies Ltd.
Software - Infrastructure · $137.18 · beta 0.47
Why now
Software - Infrastructure · market cap $14.0b. Down 35% from 52-week high of $210.66 — deep drawdown territory. 31 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $145.83 (implying +6% upside).
Moat
Net margin 38% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 38% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 105% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Down 35% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up. Software — competitive moat is durable until it isn't; watch net revenue retention, gross margin trends, and any new market entrant with a fundamentally lower price point.
FTNTFortinet, Inc.
Software - Infrastructure · $194.75 · beta 1.04
Why now
Software - Infrastructure · market cap $142.9b. Trading near 52-week high of $194.95 — momentum setup, limited technical margin of safety. Revenue growing +19%, comfortably above the S&P median. 36 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $164.32 (implying -16% upside).
Moat
Net margin 28% sits well above the S&P median (~11%) — suggests structural pricing advantage or cost discipline competitors can't quickly close. FCF converts 151% of net income, helped by cash released from working capital ($532m) that doesn't repeat every year. $142.9b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Trailing P/E 68.8x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. Trading within 0% of the 52-week high — limited technical margin of safety; a momentum reversal would test conviction. P/S 19.0x embeds aggressive forward growth — disappointing top-line guidance would compress the multiple hard.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
CHKP leads FTNT by 13.6 points (75.8 to 62.2), its sharpest advantage coming in P/E (grade A-). A contrarian could still prefer FTNT for its stronger Rev (grade B+). Note they play different roles — CHKP screens as value, FTNT screens as growth — so the model rewards different traits for each.
Our AI analyst is busy right now, so this verdict is drawn directly from the pillars, grades and DCF above.
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CHKP and FTNT diverge
On the headline score the gap is 1.8 points in favor of FTNT. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
GrowthCHKP 48.5 · FTNT 89.7FTNT +41.2
ValueCHKP 51.8 · FTNT 29.4CHKP +22.4
QualityCHKP 88.2 · FTNT 91.4FTNT +3.2
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is FTNT or CHKP the better stock?
FTNT scores higher: FTNT 62.3, CHKP 60.5 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do FTNT and CHKP differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where FTNT leads by 41 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are FTNT and CHKP scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.