NEW YORK, Jan 15, 2026, 12:50 EST — Regular session
- CrowdStrike shares rose about 1% after a judge dismissed a shareholder fraud lawsuit tied to the 2024 outage.
- Investors are also weighing CrowdStrike’s push into browser and identity security through fresh dealmaking.
- Next up: closing timelines, any litigation spillover, and the next earnings update.
CrowdStrike Holdings Inc (CRWD.O) shares rose on Thursday after a U.S. judge dismissed a shareholder fraud lawsuit tied to the company’s July 2024 software outage. The stock was up 1.2% at $466.07 in midday trading, after closing at $460.70 in the prior session. (Investing.com)
The ruling trims a legal overhang that has sat on the stock since the outage, when investors were already jittery about software quality controls at one of the market’s highest-profile cybersecurity vendors. It also lands in the middle of a broader debate about whether security budgets are shifting toward platform “bundles” or staying fragmented.
Deal talk has kept the ticker busy, too. CrowdStrike has agreed to buy browser runtime security firm Seraphic Security, and last week announced a $740 million deal for identity security startup SGNL as it tries to extend protection beyond laptops and servers and into logins and browser sessions — where a lot of work now happens. (CyberScoop)
In the lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman in Austin, Texas, said shareholders failed to plausibly allege that CrowdStrike and senior executives made materially false statements or acted with an intent to defraud. A spokesman for New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said the decision was “under review,” while CrowdStrike chief legal officer Cathleen Anderson said the company appreciated the court’s decision to dismiss the case. (Reuters)
CrowdStrike’s pitch on the Seraphic deal is simple: security teams can’t see enough inside the browser session, even though that’s where employees click links, log into apps and move data. CEO George Kurtz said the aim is to “turn any browser into a secure enterprise browser,” without forcing users to switch tools or change how they work. (Built In Austin)
Browser runtime security is meant to sit inside the session and catch threats such as phishing and “zero-day” exploits — attacks that hit before a vendor has issued a fix. SecurityWeek cited competitors in the enterprise browser security space including Menlo Security and LayerX, a reminder that CrowdStrike is pushing into a segment that already has specialists. (SecurityWeek)
Cybersecurity stocks were mixed on the day. Palo Alto Networks edged up, Zscaler and Fortinet were slightly higher, while SentinelOne slipped; identity-focused names Okta and CyberArk were little changed.
But the easy read — “lawsuit gone, stock up” — has limits. CrowdStrike still has to show that its acquisition push doesn’t dilute execution, and that customers keep expanding on the platform even as boards ask harder questions about outages, vendor concentration and contract terms.
Wall Street’s next hard checkpoint is earnings. Zacks expects CrowdStrike’s next results on March 3, and traders will be listening for any update on deal-closing timelines and how the company frames demand after a noisy stretch of legal and product headlines. (Zacks)
