** Macquarie initiates coverage of digital identity verification firm Okta OKTA.O with 'outperform' rating and $100 PT

** The brokerage sees many levers like longer-term

contracts and go-to-market changes, for top-line acceleration, which could be a catalyst for expansion of the company's relatively low trading multiples

** Macquarie also sees Okta facing intense competition from Microsoft, which the brokerage said OKTA counters with its positioning as the leading independent vendor for diverse IT environments

** "Adoption of agentic AI could represent a significant

new opportunity in the identity space, as enterprises need to protect non-human identities (NHIs)" the brokerage said, adding that a major focus of OKTA's current roadmap is securing the AI-driven enterprise through an identity security fabric

** Up to last close, stock has fallen 9%

(Reporting by Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru)

((Kritika.Lamba@thomsonreuters.com))