Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Scotiabank

Stock analysts at Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a "sector perform" rating and a $172.00 price target on the software maker's stock. Scotiabank's price target would suggest a potential upside of 0.96% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on QLYS. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Qualys from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Qualys from $146.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Qualys in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Qualys in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Qualys from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $154.57.

Qualys Stock Performance

NASDAQ QLYS traded up $0.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $170.36. The stock had a trading volume of 261,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 457,842. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.01 and a beta of 0.51. Qualys has a one year low of $107.00 and a one year high of $206.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.54.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The software maker reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.26. Qualys had a net margin of 27.34% and a return on equity of 49.06%. The firm had revenue of $144.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.69 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Qualys will post 3.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Qualys

In related news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,130 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.49, for a total value of $191,523.70. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 96,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,395,445.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Qualys news, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 1,430 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.91, for a total transaction of $235,821.30. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 63,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,398,729.87. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,130 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.49, for a total value of $191,523.70. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 96,734 shares in the company, valued at $16,395,445.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,792 shares of company stock valued at $2,455,489 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qualys

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Qualys during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Qualys during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in Qualys by 1,666.7% during the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the software maker's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Qualys by 545.2% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 200 shares of the software maker's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Qualys by 218.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 210 shares of the software maker's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 99.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.