2 Top-Rated Cybersecurity Stocks to Buy Hand Over Fist and Hold Long Term

If there's one thing making consumers and company executives equally nervous right now, it's cyber attacks. Organizations that leave themselves exposed to malicious cybersecurity breaches can quickly lose public trust, and consumers are growing more conscious about the safety of their data. 

It's the reason global expenditure on cybersecurity is set to top $217 billion this year, with 58% growth expected between now and 2025. It's driven by the corporate sector's more proactive approach to protection, enlisting new threat-detection technologies to stay ahead of potential risks.

Tenable (TENB 1.45%) and CrowdStrike (CRWD -3.17%) are both considered No. 1 in their specialist cybersecurity categories, and are also loved by Wall Street analysts. Here's why these two stocks should top your shopping list, too. 

Image source: Getty Images.

1. The case for Tenable

The threat landscape in cyberspace continues to expand as more of our lives transition into the digital world. Malicious actors have a much larger attack surface now than they did even 10 years ago, which has been exacerbated by new technologies like the cloud.

Cloud computing has made it possible for large organizations to access their assets from wherever they are in the world. It's one of the drivers of work-from-home trends that formed during the pandemic. But it means hackers now have an online avenue to attack company (and consumer) data and digital assets.

Tenable offers protection across the whole spectrum, whether it's a local network or cloud-based environment. Its Nessus vulnerability management platform is unique because it can be customized and expanded to suit specific needs, which is why it has accrued over 2 million downloads and protects 30,000 organizations. 

The accelerating commitment to cybersecurity in the corporate world is evident by the growth in Tenable's top-paying customer base, who spend at least $100,000 per year with the company.

Data source: Tenable. CAGR = Compound annual growth rate.

While six-figure customers are a small fraction of Tenable's overall customers, the company is acquiring them at a faster pace than it's growing its overall revenue base. If this trend continues, these customers will have a larger influence on revenue growth over time. 

The U.S. government maintains a database of over 172,000 common vulnerabilities and exposures, and Tenable offers protection against at least 66,000 of them, which makes it No. 1 in the industry -- and the obvious choice for large organizations. It's likely why the 16 Wall Street analysts who cover Tenable all rate the stock as a buy. 

With top ratings on Wall Street and within the cybersecurity industry, this stock might be a no-brainer for long-term investors. 

Image source: Getty Images.

2. The case for CrowdStrike

CrowdStrike offers a full suite of cybersecurity products for businesses and consumers, but it truly excels at endpoint protection. This involves securing the devices of end users in a particular network, whether it's a computer, point-of-sale system, or mobile device. Since remote tools are increasingly becoming the norm, defending them is more important than ever.

In fact, CrowdStrike's Falcon platform was rated No. 1 in the industry for modern endpoint security in the 2020 IDC Market Shares Report. 

Falcon operates in the cloud, where the majority of modern threats live. The platform can detect, investigate, and eradicate them in under 60 minutes -- and it does so around the clock. The result is fewer business interruptions, and therefore more money in the bank. 

CrowdStrike had 1,660 net new subscription customers in the fiscal second quarter of 2022, a whopping 81% year-over-year increase. Its powerful revenue growth should therefore come as no surprise.

Data sources: CrowdStrike, Yahoo! Finance.

The company's product offering consists of 21 cloud modules, and 66% of its customer base currently uses four or more of them. It suggests a desirable level of customer satisfaction that will lead to organizations growing their expenditure with CrowdStrike over time. 

After making a loss in fiscal 2021, the company is expected to deliver $0.46 in earnings per share this fiscal year, with 71% growth slated for fiscal 2023. And in a fitting reward for the company's success, Wall Street is on board with a consensus buy rating among analysts. 

When you're adding cybersecurity to your stock portfolio, buying one of the fastest growers certainly makes a lot of sense over the long term.