CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks shares rise amid AI warnings
Shares of cybersecurity companies CrowdStrike Holdings, Palo Alto Networks and Fortinet were among the top gainers in the S&P 500 index on September 14, 2026, while chipmakers’ shares came under pressure. As MarketWatch reports, CrowdStrike shares rose 13.8% by the end of the session and closed at an all-time high.
Palo Alto Networks shares gained 13%, marking the company’s largest one-day increase since April 2025. Fortinet shares were up 9% by the close of trading.
Record advantage for the software sector
Rising cybersecurity company valuations helped the software sector post a record advantage over the semiconductor sector. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF outperformed the iShares Semiconductor ETF by 10.67 percentage points. According to Dow Jones Market Data, this was the largest one-day outperformance between the funds in history.
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Demand for cyber protection
On the previous day, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei expressed concern about the accelerating development of artificial intelligence. He warned that models could soon become so powerful that they would contribute to the emergence of a large number of bots capable of taking over the entire internet, and called on major players to slow the pace of the technology’s development and focus on its safety.
Evercore ISI analyst Kirk Materne noted that regardless of the speed at which AI agents are deployed in companies, they need to be protected, properly managed and monitored. In his view, increased attention to AI security could raise business interest in digital identity protection, data management, system observability and cybersecurity.
Materne considers Palo Alto Networks and CrowdStrike best positioned to benefit from long-term growth in cybersecurity spending, including due to their ability to provide integrated visibility and response within a broader security system. Jefferies analyst Joseph Gallo added that the security market for agentic AI is only beginning to take shape: he expects the first signals later this year and a more substantial contribution from 2027. In his view, providers of digital identity protection solutions could be among the first beneficiaries.
