Can FireEye Translate 'Newfound Press And Notoriety' Into Big Q4 Results?

FireEye Inc (NASDAQ: FEYE) received a ton of press after Sony Corp (ADR) (NYSE: SNE) and Anthem Inc (NYSE: ANTM) hired the company to solve their hacking problems. But is it enough to enhance FireEye's quarterly results?

"If they have not been able to translate that newfound press and notoriety into a better pipeline of sales, then I would be really concerned," Cody Willard, chairman of Scutify (a financial social network), told Benzinga. "I would want to see a very strong quarter."

Willard also wants to see strong guidance in the pipeline.

"And guidance for the next quarter (top and bottom line), directly because of that notoriety," he said. "I think the onus is on FireEye's management to prove they can execute and deliver."

Guidance Trumps Q4

Willard is much more interested in FireEye's future than its present day success.

"As long as the last 90 days of business weren't terrible, it's much more important to look for the guidance for FireEye because of that recent notoriety," said Willard.

He believes this is the time when CEOs and CFOs will take notice of FireEye, talk to their CTOs and inquire about FireEye's success in fixing security issues.

"If those products have value, now is the time you'd start to see it get traction," Willard added.

Plenty Of Competition

Willard said that there are "lots and lots of competition to secure corporate America" because of the growing demand to secure corporate networks. "There are going to be huge winners and huge losers," he said.

"And like I said, the onus is on FireEye to prove they're going to be one of the winners." Sony, one of FireEye's most prominent clients, didn't simply hire the company to fix its security issues.

"When those emails were coming out and being leaked and started getting traction in the media and you started reading them in grocery line checkouts, you knew some heads were going to roll at Sony," said Willard.

"It's good for shareholders that heads rolled at Sony, because [those] who were writing those emails are idiots. They had no reason to be in executive power. Good riddance."

Willard is referring to Sony Pictures Entertainment Co-Chairman Amy Pascal, who will step down later this year. She will then become a producer under a new agreement with Sony.

"Don't kid yourself – that was a huge step down for her," said Willard. "She's a nobody now. And she was one of the kings of Hollywood."

Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this report.