CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks shares rose more than 5% to record highs on Monday following the annual Black Hat cybersecurity conference in Las Vegas, where, according to CNBC, industry discussions were dominated by demand for AI-based security tools.
BTIG analysts, speaking to clients after the conference, said AI agents have become a primary attack vector and that the overall security environment has “significantly deteriorated,” while noting that adoption of AI-based security tools remains in the early stages. “The most consistent theme in our conversations — with partners, vendors and customers — was that AI agents have fundamentally changed the threat landscape,” the analysts wrote.
BTIG raised its price target on CrowdStrike shares to $237 per share, implying roughly 11% upside from Friday’s closing price. The firm said AI is catalyzing a new wave of modernization in endpoint protection, and CrowdStrike stands to benefit the most given the nature of its core offerings. BTIG also raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks shares to $380, about 4% above Friday’s closing price, arguing that the company’s identity platform and offerings such as XSIAM and Chronosphere are well positioned to benefit from the spread of AI agents in enterprise environments.