Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Several other research analysts have also commented on QLYS. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Qualys from $162.00 to $135.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Qualys from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wolfe Research raised Qualys from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Qualys from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $146.57.

Qualys Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ QLYS traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $130.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 295,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 397,789. Qualys has a 12 month low of $119.17 and a 12 month high of $174.31. The stock has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.01 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $139.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.87.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The software maker reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.16). Qualys had a return on equity of 38.52% and a net margin of 28.59%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Qualys will post 3.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Qualys

In other news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.37, for a total transaction of $209,616.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 113,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,885,415.24. This trade represents a 1.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 855 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.24, for a total transaction of $121,615.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 63,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,986,296.48. The trade was a 1.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 28,258 shares of company stock valued at $3,955,359 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qualys

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Qualys by 12,750.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 1,530 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Qualys by 29.4% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,364 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in Qualys by 7.3% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 4,267 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Qualys by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 92,004 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $11,819,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Qualys by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 29,015 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $3,525,000 after purchasing an additional 8,291 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.31% of the company’s stock.

Qualys Company Profile

Qualys, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides cloud-based platform delivering information technology (IT), security, and compliance solutions in the United States and internationally. It offers Qualys Cloud Apps, which include Cybersecurity Asset Management and External Attack Surface Management; Vulnerability Management, Detection and Response; Web Application Scanning; Patch Management; Custom Assessment and Remediation; Multi-Vector Endpoint Detection and Response; Context Extended Detection and Response; Policy Compliance; File Integrity Monitoring; and Qualys TotalCloud, as well as Cloud Workload Protection, Cloud Detection and Response, Cloud Security Posture Management, Infrastructure as Code, and Container Security.