Will the Momentum in Z-Flex Booking Fuel More Growth for Zscaler?

Zscaler Inc.’s ZS Z-Flex program is emerging as an important growth driver for the company. The offering allows customers to make multi-year commitments while giving them the flexibility to activate or switch products without going through a new purchasing process. This approach is helping Zscaler increase customer spending, improve visibility and strengthen long-term relationships.The momentum behind Z-Flex accelerated during the third quarter of fiscal 2026. Z-Flex generated more than $480 million in the total contract value (TCV) during the quarter, representing growth of more than 60% sequentially. Over the last 12 months, Zscaler delivered more than $1 billion in Z-Flex TCV with an average contract duration of four years.The program is also encouraging broader platform adoption. Several large customers expanded their use of existing products while adding new modules, including AI Protect and Zero Trust Branch solutions. During the last earnings call, management revealed that one large financial customer increased annual spending by nearly 50%, while another enterprise customer expanded its spending by 60%.The strong uptake of Z-Flex is contributing to Zscaler’s overall growth. During the third quarter, annual recurring revenues (ARR) rose 25% year over year to more than $3.5 billion. Remaining performance obligations increased roughly 30% to $6.5 billion, providing strong revenue visibility. Total third-quarter revenues rose 25% year over year to $850.4 million.Management believes Z-Flex shortens sales cycles, increases upselling opportunities and improves customer retention. As enterprises continue consolidating cybersecurity vendors and adopting broader Zero Trust platforms, Z-Flex could remain a meaningful catalyst for Zscaler’s long-term growth and revenue expansion. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Zscaler’s fiscal 2026 revenues is pegged at $3.33 billion, indicating 24.6% year-over-year growth.How Do ZS’ Rivals Compare in Flexible Customer Contracts?Two major cybersecurity companies competing with Zscaler in long-term customer engagements are Palo Alto Networks, Inc. PANW and CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. CRWD.Palo Alto Networks has successfully pushed its platformization strategy, encouraging customers to consolidate multiple security products under one vendor. In the third quarter of fiscal 2026, the company’s next-generation security ARR jumped 60% year over year to $8.1 billion, reflecting strong customer commitment to multi-product contracts.Palo Alto Networks’ bundled offerings across network security, cloud security and security operations help improve customer retention and expand spending over time. This strategy shares similarities with Zscaler’s Z-Flex program, which promotes broader platform adoption through multi-year agreements.CrowdStrike has also benefited from higher customer consolidation trends. The company’s ARR rose 24% year over year to $5.5 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2027. More customers continue adopting multiple Falcon modules, helping expand contract values and increase retention rates. CrowdStrike’s subscription-based model provides recurring revenue visibility similar to Zscaler’s long-term commitments.While both competitors, Palo Alto Networks and CrowdStrike, focus on platform expansion, Zscaler’s Z-Flex program offers customers additional flexibility to activate or swap products during contract periods, which strengthens its upselling opportunities and long-term revenue growth.Zscaler’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesZS shares have plunged 44.8% year to date against the Zacks Security industry’s rise of 43.2%.Zscaler YTD Price Return PerformanceImage Source: Zacks Investment ResearchFrom a valuation standpoint, ZS trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 5.22, significantly below the industry’s average of 15.65.Zscaler Forward 12-Month P/S RatioImage Source: Zacks Investment ResearchThe Zacks Consensus Estimate for Zscaler’s fiscal 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year increases of 25.9% and 10.9%, respectively. Estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward over the past 30 days.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchZscaler currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks