JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan cut its Qualys price target to $215 from $241 and maintained a neutral rating; its new target implies 21.65% upside from the prior close.
• Qualys shares fell $25.72 to $176.74 on Tuesday. Analysts’ consensus rating was Hold, with an average price target of $192.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: revenue rose 10.7% year over year to $188.05 million, and EPS was $2.12 versus the $1.96 consensus. The company also raised its full-year 2026 guidance.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $241.00 to $215.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the software maker's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price suggests a potential upside of 21.65% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. DA Davidson increased their target price on Qualys from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Qualys from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Qualys from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Qualys from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Qualys from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $192.00.

Qualys Stock Performance

Qualys stock traded down $25.72 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $176.74. 746,770 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 759,318. Qualys has a 52-week low of $74.51 and a 52-week high of $235.54. The stock has a market cap of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.58 and a beta of 0.54. The firm's 50 day moving average is $191.07 and its 200 day moving average is $137.06.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The software maker reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.16. Qualys had a net margin of 29.38% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The business had revenue of $188.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.63 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.86 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Qualys will post 5.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Qualys news, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 881 shares of Qualys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.52, for a total value of $166,967.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 57,807 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,955,582.64. The trade was a 1.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 2,659 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.66, for a total value of $557,485.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 68,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,300,489.28. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 11,672 shares of company stock valued at $2,192,747 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Qualys

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in QLYS. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Qualys in the 2nd quarter valued at $792,316,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Qualys during the second quarter valued at approximately $197,624,000. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Qualys by 27.2% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 663,092 shares of the software maker's stock worth $124,131,000 after purchasing an additional 141,603 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Qualys by 127.0% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 832,796 shares of the software maker's stock worth $73,161,000 after buying an additional 465,952 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Qualys by 6.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 763,099 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $67,041,000 after acquiring an additional 45,718 shares during the period. 99.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Qualys News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualys this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualys reported Q3 revenue of $188.1 million, up 10.7% year over year, and adjusted EPS of $2.12, topping consensus estimates of $186.6 million and $1.96. Qualys Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its FY2026 guidance: adjusted EPS of $8.07–$8.14 versus a $7.44 consensus, and revenue of $736.9–$738.9 million versus $735.5 million. Q4 EPS guidance also exceeds consensus, while revenue guidance is only slightly above expectations. Qualys FY2026 guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Qualys expanded its global mROC alliance with partners covering mobile, operational technology, IoT and identity security, potentially broadening its reach across cyber-risk markets. mROC alliance expansion
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms raised price targets, including RBC to $197 and Baird to $210, but kept neutral or sector-perform ratings. Qualys also plans to speak at the UBS Global Technology and AI Conference. RBC rating update Investor conference announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Shares have declined following results, with coverage attributing the reaction to concern over the revenue outlook despite the raised guidance and quarterly beat. Morgan Stanley raised its target to $140 but retained an underweight rating, implying substantial downside from the then-current quote. Qualys earnings and stock reaction Morgan Stanley rating update

About Qualys

Qualys, Inc. provides cloud-based security and compliance software to help organizations identify and manage cybersecurity risks. Its platform brings together information about an organization's IT assets and security posture to support vulnerability management, threat detection, and compliance activities. Qualys offers products and services for vulnerability assessment and remediation, cloud security, endpoint protection, web application security, and policy compliance. Its solutions are designed to help customers monitor systems across cloud environments, on-premises infrastructure, and other connected assets.

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