Buy or Sell CrowdStrike Stock At $520?

CrowdStrike stock (NASDAQ: CRWD) has been on a remarkable run, surging 10% in just the past week and reaching a high of $522 on October 23, 2025. This move has pushed its year-to-date gains to an impressive 50%.

The recent momentum is largely attributed to a wave of analyst upgrades and raised price targets. This positive sentiment follows the company’s strong performance and strategic advancements highlighted at its recent Fal.Con event in September.

With the stock currently trading around $520, investors are sitting on substantial gains. The critical question now is: After this impressive climb, is CRWD stock still a buy?

While we see minimal fundamental cause for concern with CRWD stock, we consider it an expensive pick at its current price of around $520. The primary issue is that its current valuation appears Very High.

We reached this conclusion by comparing CRWD’s current valuation with its operating performance over recent years and its current and historical financial condition. Our analysis of CrowdStrike across key parameters—Growth, Profitability, Financial Stability, and Downturn Resilience—shows that the company has a Strong operating performance and financial condition, as detailed below.

That being said, if you seek an upside with less volatility than holding an individual stock like CRWD, consider the High Quality Portfolio. It has comfortably outperformed its benchmark—a combination of the S&P 500, Russell, and S&P MidCap indexes—and has achieved returns exceeding 105% since its inception. Why is that? As a group, HQ Portfolio stocks provided better returns with less risk versus the benchmark index; less of a roller-coaster ride, as evident in HQ Portfolio performance metrics.

Image by Arthur Bowers from Pixabay

Is CrowdStrike Simply Too Expensive?

Let’s address the elephant in the room first – valuation. When you compare what you’re paying for each dollar of sales or cash flow, CrowdStrike looks astronomically expensive.

How expensive are we talking? The numbers are striking:

• Price-to-sales ratio of 30.1x versus just 3.2x for the S&P 500
• Price-to-free cash flow ratio of 125.9x compared to 21.1x for the broader market

These multiples suggest investors are paying a massive premium for growth expectations. The question becomes whether that growth can justify such lofty valuations.

Can CrowdStrike’s Growth Story Deliver?

Here’s where things get interesting. CrowdStrike’s revenue growth has been nothing short of spectacular, making a compelling case for why investors might accept those high multiples.

• Three-year average revenue growth of 33.5% versus 5.4% for the S&P 500
• Last 12 months saw 23.5% growth, taking revenues from $3.5 billion to $4.3 billion
• Most recent quarter showed 21.3% growth to $1.2 billion

This consistent high-growth trajectory in the critical cybersecurity market suggests CrowdStrike has found a winning formula. The company continues to outpace the broader market by a wide margin.

Why Are Profits So Elusive Despite Strong Growth?

This is where CrowdStrike’s story becomes more complex. Despite impressive revenue growth, traditional profitability metrics paint a concerning picture.

• Operating margin of -8.7% versus 18.6% for the S&P 500
• Net income margin of -6.8% compared to 12.7% for the broader market
• However, operating cash flow margin is strong at 32.0% versus 20.4% for the S&P 500

This disparity suggests CrowdStrike is investing heavily for growth while generating solid cash flows. The company appears to be prioritizing market share expansion over near-term profitability.

How Solid Is CrowdStrike’s Financial Foundation?

Despite profitability challenges, CrowdStrike’s balance sheet strength is impressive and provides crucial flexibility for its growth strategy.

What makes the balance sheet so strong? The financial stability metrics are excellent:

• Debt-to-equity ratio of just 0.6% versus 21.1% for the S&P 500
• Cash represents 53.5% of total assets compared to 7.0% for the broader market
• $5.0 billion in cash and equivalents provides substantial runway

This financial strength allows CrowdStrike to continue investing aggressively without worrying about funding constraints.

Can CrowdStrike Weather Market Storms?

Understanding how CrowdStrike performs during downturns helps gauge its resilience as a long-term holding.

• During 2022’s inflation shock, CRWD fell 67.7% versus 25.4% for the S&P 500. However, it recovered faster, reaching pre-crisis levels by January 2024
• During COVID-19 pandemic, it fell 50.0% versus 33.9% for the S&P 500 but recovered within two months.

CrowdStrike tends to experience more volatile swings but demonstrates strong recovery potential, likely due to the essential nature of cybersecurity services. Look at our dshboard on – How Low Can CRWD Stock Really Go – for more details.

Also, investing in a single stock without comprehensive analysis can be risky. Consider the Trefis Reinforced Value (RV) Portfolio, which has outperformed its all-cap stocks benchmark (combination of the S&P 500, S&P mid-cap, and Russell 2000 benchmark indices) to produce strong returns for investors. Why is that? The quarterly rebalanced mix of large-, mid-, and small-cap RV Portfolio stocks provided a responsive way to make the most of upbeat market conditions while limiting losses when markets head south, as detailed in RV Portfolio performance metrics.

The Investment Verdict

CrowdStrike presents a classic growth versus value dilemma. The company combines exceptional growth with very strong financial stability, making it a high-quality business. However, its current valuation of around $520 appears stretched, even for a company with such impressive fundamentals. Of course, we could be wrong in our assessment and investors may continue to be willing to pay 30 times or higher trailing revenues for CRWD stock. That said, investors should take into account the risks, as well. We think that investors may be better off waiting for a better entry point, as the current price appears to discount a lot of future success.

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