John Whittle, Chief Operating Officer of Fortinet, Inc., filed a Form 4 on November 3, 2026, disclosing the vesting of restricted stock units and a related tax-withholding share disposition that occurred on November 1, 2026.

Key Highlights

  • Three RSU tranches vested: John Whittle received 1,608, 1,826, and 1,138 shares of common stock through the vesting of restricted stock units on November 1, 2026, at $0 acquisition price each.
  • Tax-withholding disposition: 2,309 shares were withheld and cancelled by Fortinet at $136.08 per share to cover federal and state tax obligations arising from the RSU vestings.
  • Resulting direct ownership: Following all reported transactions, Whittle held 99,250 shares of common stock directly.
  • Remaining RSU balances: After the vestings, Whittle held 1,609, 9,135, and 10,239 unvested RSUs across the three respective grant tranches.
  • Transaction type: The share withholding is described in the filing as an exempt transaction pursuant to Section 16b-3(e), incident to the vesting of RSUs.
  • Issuer: Fortinet, Inc. is listed on NASDAQ:FTNT.

John Whittle's November 2026 RSU Vesting and Share Withholding at Fortinet

According to the filing, John Whittle, Chief Operating Officer of Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT), had three separate restricted stock unit grants vest on November 1, 2026. The vesting events produced 1,608 shares from the first tranche, 1,826 from the second, and 1,138 from the third, all acquired at a price of $0, consistent with the nature of RSU settlements. The filing notes that each RSU represents a contingent right to receive one share of the issuer's common stock upon settlement.

Concurrent with the vestings, Whittle disposed of 2,309 shares at $136.08 per share through an exempt transaction under Section 16b-3(e). The filing states that "all of the shares reported as disposed of in this Form 4 were relinquished by the Reporting Person and cancelled by the Issuer in exchange for the Issuer's agreement to pay federal and state tax withholding obligations of the Reporting Person resulting from the vesting of RSUs." This share-withholding arrangement is a standard mechanism used to satisfy tax obligations without an open-market sale.

The three RSU grants carry distinct vesting schedules. The first tranche began with 25% vesting on February 1, 2024, with the remainder vesting in equal quarterly installments thereafter. The second tranche started with 25% vesting on February 1, 2025, and the third on February 1, 2026, each following the same quarterly cadence. All grants are subject to the reporting person's continued service to Fortinet on each vesting date. The filing was signed by Robert Turner under power of attorney on November 3, 2026.

What Was Disclosed

Fortinet COO John Whittle's Form 4 discloses the November 1, 2026 vesting of 4,572 RSUs across three grants and the concurrent withholding of 2,309 shares at $136.08 to cover tax obligations, leaving him with 99,250 directly held shares.