Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Qualys from Hold to Buy, though analyst sentiment remains mostly cautious: MarketBeat’s consensus is Hold, with an average price target of $195.
• Qualys beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $2.12 versus $1.96 expected and revenue of $188.05 million versus $186.63 million; revenue grew 10.7% year over year.
• Several analysts raised price targets, but ratings remain mixed, including Hold and Underweight views that reflect concerns about whether growth can support the stock’s valuation.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on QLYS. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Qualys from $180.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Qualys in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Qualys from $160.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Qualys from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Qualys from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $195.00.

Qualys Price Performance

NASDAQ QLYS opened at $172.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.28 and a beta of 0.54. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $190.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $137.95. Qualys has a 1 year low of $74.51 and a 1 year high of $235.54.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The software maker reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $188.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $186.63 million. Qualys had a return on equity of 37.09% and a net margin of 29.59%. The firm's revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.86 EPS. Research analysts expect that Qualys will post 5.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 2,659 shares of Qualys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.66, for a total transaction of $557,485.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 68,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,300,489.28. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Sumedh Thakar sold 3,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.36, for a total value of $609,152.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 177,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,719,989.68. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 11,672 shares of company stock valued at $2,192,747 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Qualys

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in QLYS. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in Qualys during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Qualys in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Qualys in the second quarter valued at $51,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in Qualys in the second quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Qualys by 40.5% in the second quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 472 shares of the software maker's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. 99.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Qualys

These are some of the QLYS stories that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Several analyst updates raised price targets or suggested the stock could rise, including reports on Baird, Piper Sandler, RBC, Morgan Stanley, UBS and Wedbush. These target changes provide a counterpoint to the post-earnings weakness. Baird price target Piper Sandler price target RBC price target Morgan Stanley price target UBS outlook Wedbush outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion is divided, indicating that the investment debate centers on whether Qualys can deliver enough growth to support its valuation. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on Qualys
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies maintained a Hold rating, while another analysis argues Qualys needs faster growth to support its valuation. Those cautious views may be weighing on sentiment after earnings. Jefferies Maintains Hold Qualys: The Valuation Needs Faster Growth

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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