What happened
Shares of Okta, Inc. (OKTA 1.38%) were taking a hit today as the stock got swept up in the broader tech and growth stock sell-off. There was no company-specific news out on the cloud-based security company, but the stock fell along with several other momentum plays, closing down 9.6%.
Image source: Okta.
So what
Okta was far from alone among cloud stocks to fall today as Shopify was down 7% and Appian and Workday both slipped 5%. Such high-priced growth stocks tend to move as a group and can have volatile swings on days like today when the Nasdaq is down 1.3%.
Okta stock is still up 93% this year as momentum and investor enthusiasm for cloud stocks seem to have propelled shares higher. The identity specialist turned in a strong first-quarter earnings report in June, but the company continues to operate at a loss and sees revenue growth slowing this year.
Now what
Investors never like seeing one of their holdings drop by double digits, but there's little reason to react to a non-event like today, which shouldn't affect anyone's investing thesis. Considering how much Okta stock has already gained this year, it's not a surprise to see some air come out of the rally.
Despite today's sell-off, the company's prospects look strong as it's the leader in the cloud-based identity and security niche and continues to put up rapid growth. There's no way to know where the stock will go in the short term, but Okta's future continues to look bright.
