Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Hits New 12-Month High Following Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Qualys surpassed quarterly expectations: Adjusted EPS was $1.98 versus the $1.78 consensus, while revenue rose 11.1% year over year to $182.18 million, above estimates.
• Management raised its 2026 outlook: Full-year revenue guidance increased to $732 million–$738 million, with EPS projected at $7.74–$7.88; third-quarter guidance also came in above analyst expectations.
• The stock reached a new 52-week high, though analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and a $144.87 target price. Recent insider sales, including transactions by the CEO and CFO under pre-arranged plans, may also weigh modestly on sentiment.

Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $183.16 and last traded at $198.9250, with a volume of 4106 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $161.06.

The software maker reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $182.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.57 million. Qualys had a return on equity of 37.15% and a net margin of 29.41%.Qualys's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 earnings per share. Qualys has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.740-7.880 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS.

Key Headlines Impacting Qualys

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualys this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations. Qualys reported adjusted EPS of $1.98, surpassing the $1.78 consensus estimate and rising from $1.68 a year earlier. Revenue increased 11.1% year over year to $182.18 million, ahead of the $178.57 million forecast. Qualys Announces Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Full-year guidance was raised above analyst expectations. Management now projects 2026 revenue of $732 million to $738 million, compared with prior guidance of $721 million to $727 million, and EPS of $7.74 to $7.88 versus the $7.16 consensus. Third-quarter revenue guidance of $185.5 million to $187.5 million and EPS guidance of $1.91 to $1.98 also exceed estimates.
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability and growth initiatives supported the bullish reaction. Adjusted EBITDA reached $83.8 million. Qualys highlighted demand for AI-related security products, Risk Operations Center adoption, federal business, partner execution and early QFlex customer engagement as growth drivers. Qualys Strong Q2 Results and Raised Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: InstaScan expands Qualys’ AI-enabled security offering. The new capability uses existing asset telemetry and AI-driven correlation to identify newly disclosed vulnerabilities without waiting for traditional scan windows, potentially improving the platform’s value to enterprise customers. Qualys Launches InstaScan
• Neutral Sentiment: Management will attend Canaccord Genuity’s 46th Annual Growth Conference for a fireside chat and one-on-one investor meetings. The event could provide additional detail on demand and the raised outlook but does not itself change financial guidance. Qualys Investor Conference Announcement
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,627 shares worth approximately $249,000 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sale is relatively small compared with her remaining ownership and appears scheduled, limiting its significance, but continued insider selling may weigh modestly on sentiment.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on QLYS. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Qualys from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Qualys from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Qualys in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Qualys from $85.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Qualys from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $144.87.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,627 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.17, for a total transaction of $162,976.59. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 83,211 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,335,245.87. This trade represents a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Sumedh S. Thakar sold 30,000 shares of Qualys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total transaction of $4,050,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 196,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,552,610. This trade represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 76,855 shares of company stock worth $9,706,670. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qualys

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of QLYS. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in Qualys by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,985 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Qualys by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,027 shares of the software maker's stock worth $665,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Qualys by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,038 shares of the software maker's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Qualys by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,178 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Qualys by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,231 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 99.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Qualys Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $131.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.71 and a beta of 0.60.

Qualys Company Profile

Qualys, Inc NASDAQ: QLYS is a leading provider of cloud-based security and compliance solutions designed to help organizations streamline their IT security programs. Operating on a unified, modular platform, Qualys offers continuous visibility into global IT assets through a combination of lightweight cloud agents and on-premises scanner appliances. The platform supports an array of security and compliance use cases, enabling real-time detection of vulnerabilities, policy violations and misconfigurations across on-premises, cloud and hybrid environments.

The company's flagship Qualys Cloud Platform delivers a suite of integrated applications, including vulnerability management, detection and response (VMDR), policy compliance, web application scanning, file integrity monitoring, asset inventory and container security.

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