It’s going to be one of the busiest weeks for corporate earnings, but investors will have to wait another month before hearing from CrowdStrike Holdings (NASDAQ:). The cybersecurity giant is up 37.6% in 2025.
That percentage has increased to over 50% since its low in early March and more than 83% in the last 12 months. That period is significant because it corresponds to the company’s outage caused by a software glitch.
CRWD stock hasn’t just made up the 44% loss that happened after the outage. It’s nearly doubled it. But that has the stock looking expensive. At 28x price-to-sales (P/S), it’s trading at a significant premium to its historical average as well as the industry average for software companies and technology stocks.
But is the premium justified? Demand for cybersecurity has never been higher, and it’s not going to decrease anytime soon. In fact, that may be one of the more bullish reasons for investors to buy CRWD stock.
The Falcon Platform Is Built With AI In Mind
CrowdStrike has made Charlotte AI, its AI-powered cybersecurity analyst, a key marketing feature of its platform. However, Charlotte AI is just one part of the company’s comprehensive AI-native platform.
It starts behind the scenes, where the Falcon platform’s Threat Graph engine analyzes trillions of signals per day using machine learning to detect real-time threats. Other features include Falcon Prevent (antivirus), Falcon Insight (endpoint detection and response), and Falcon Identity.
The takeaway for investors new to CrowdStrike is that the company has been applying AI to its platform since its inception and from the ground up. This appeals to customers who are looking for intelligent platforms that are simple to incorporate into their operations.
Cybersecurity Reveals the Uglier Side of AI
One of AI’s impressive benefits is the speed at which it can handle inquiries. However, that speed can be used for both good and bad purposes. Cybersecurity was already complicated before AI. Now, AI can accelerate the pace and scope of cyberattacks.
That means cybersecurity companies have to be just as nimble. This is an area where CrowdStrike excels. The company’s Falcon platform features an end-to-end cloud-native design that gives it a first-mover advantage in embedding AI deeply into its entire platform.
This also separates CrowdStrike from competitors that are catching up quickly. However, many of these companies will need to rely on M&A activity to increase their AI capabilities.
But pointing out a competitive advantage doesn’t mean much without the revenue to back it up. That’s why investors should pay attention to the company’s last two earnings reports. In both cases, chief executive officer (CEO) George Kurtz noted that the company has generated record net new annual recurring revenue (ARR). This is a key metric for software companies because it tends to be sticky.
What’s also good to note about the news is that the company is booking that revenue from both public sector and enterprise clients and, in some cases, is winning those customers from other legacy cybersecurity companies.
Is CRWD Stock a Buy Before Earnings?
CRWD is down about 5.5% in the last 30 days, but it’s shown a reversal in the last seven days.
That said, after such a strong move in 2025, investors may want to wait for the company’s earnings before getting bullish on CRWD stock.
That sense of cautious optimism is also showing up in the options market. The Aug. 29 options chain, which expires just after earnings, shows the highest trading volume and open interest in the $460 call, an in-the-money contract.
Rising implied volatility suggests traders expect a post-earnings move higher.
Meanwhile, interest in higher-strike calls, at $505 and $525, points to speculative bets on a potential breakout.