New York, Jan 16, 2026, 14:14 ET — Regular session
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. shares (CRWD) edged up Friday after the company said it expects to be “only negligibly affected” by reports that China is pushing domestic firms to ditch foreign cybersecurity software. The crackdown also targets competitors like Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, and Check Point. The stock gained 0.2%, closing at $455.91 following a session low of $443.77. 1
Why it matters now: cybersecurity is as much a political issue as it is an IT decision, with policy shifts often catching the market off guard before any clear explanation emerges. Even vendors claiming minimal direct exposure to China find that procurement bans reshape how international clients assess risk, data security, and reliance on suppliers.
CrowdStrike found some legal breathing room this week. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman in Austin threw out a shareholder lawsuit linked to the July 2024 outage that took down over 8 million Microsoft Windows-based systems globally. The judge ruled investors didn’t convincingly claim any materially false statements or fraudulent intent. He did, however, give the New York State pension fund a chance to amend its complaint. CrowdStrike’s chief legal officer Cathleen Anderson expressed gratitude for the court’s “thoughtful consideration and decision to dismiss this case.” Meanwhile, a separate lawsuit from Delta Air Lines over the same outage is still moving forward in Georgia. 2
Late Thursday, a charitable remainder unitrust connected to CEO George Kurtz submitted a Form 144, signaling a potential sale of 20,960 CrowdStrike Class A shares worth roughly $9.66 million via J.P. Morgan Securities, according to the filing. A Form 144 alerts the SEC that an insider or affiliate might sell restricted stock, but it doesn’t guarantee the transaction will happen. 3
The broader market showed some caution but edged higher, as investors held back on major moves before the long weekend. “The administration seems to be backing off some of that (Fed rhetoric),” noted John Belton, portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds. 4
CrowdStrike’s challenge isn’t tied to any one region but to ripple effects: shifting customer reviews, tighter procurement checks, and the speed at which geopolitical tensions hit enterprise software spending. Its stock has become more of a mood gauge for the entire cybersecurity sector than a tale about just one company.
But risks remain. Beijing’s shift might evolve into stricter procurement regulations, and wider restrictions are tougher for investors to value than just a single quarter’s revenue. Renewed legal battles linked to the 2024 outage, or new insider-sale reports, could also weigh on the stock.
Traders are now focused on whether China’s guidance will be broadly enforced and if it sparks similar restrictions elsewhere. The Federal Reserve’s rate decision on Jan. 28 looms as the next major event, putting pressure on high-multiple tech and software stocks. 5
