Why CrowdStrike Holdings Stock Popped 12.5% This Morning

Shares of CrowdStrike Holdings (NASDAQ: CRWD), a popular cybersecurity stock, surged 12.5% higher out of the gate Wednesday morning after a sizable "earnings beat" sparked a whole series of hikes to its price target on Wall Street. Expected to report an adjusted loss of $0.06 per share on $165.4 million in sales in its fiscal first quarter of 2020, last night CrowdStrike instead reported a small $0.02 pro forma profit -- and sales of $178.1 million that shot right past the analysts' estimates. Granted, CrowdStrike was not profitable when profit was calculated according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).