Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) had its price target cut by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $241.00 to $215.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the software maker’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Qualys from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Qualys in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Qualys from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Qualys from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Qualys from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Qualys presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $195.00.

Qualys Trading Down 5.3%

Qualys stock opened at $173.09 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.04 billion, a PE ratio of 29.85 and a beta of 0.54. Qualys has a 12 month low of $74.51 and a 12 month high of $235.54. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $191.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $137.75.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $188.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.63 million. Qualys had a net margin of 29.59% and a return on equity of 37.09%. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.86 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Qualys will post 5.84 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 2,659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.66, for a total value of $557,485.94. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 68,208 shares in the company, valued at $14,300,489.28. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Bruce Posey sold 881 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the insider owned 57,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,955,582.64. This trade represents a 1.50% decrease in their position. 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 11,672 shares of company stock worth $2,192,747. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Qualys

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaGrep UK Ltd raised its stake in Qualys by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaGrep UK Ltd now owns 2,663 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Qualys by 21.3% in the 3rd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,796 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Qualys during the 3rd quarter worth $699,000. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Qualys during the 3rd quarter worth $219,000. Finally, USS Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Qualys by 26.1% during the 3rd quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 5,800 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. 99.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Latest Qualys News

Here’s some of the latest news about QLYS:

• Positive Sentiment: Robert W. Baird, Piper Sandler, Royal Bank of Canada and Morgan Stanley raised their price targets for Qualys. Wedbush and UBS analysts also expect the shares to rise, offering a counterpoint to the recent weakness. Baird price target Piper Sandler price target RBC price target Morgan Stanley price target Wedbush outlook UBS outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualys raised its guidance, but the accompanying coverage questions whether the stock’s valuation already reflects that improvement. The company also recently reported quarterly EPS and revenue above consensus, while revenue grew 10.7% year over year. Guidance and valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies maintained a Hold rating and lowered its expectations for Qualys’ share price. JPMorgan also cut its price target. Separately, a Seeking Alpha analysis argues that the valuation requires faster growth, reinforcing concerns that current growth may not justify the stock’s valuation. Jefferies outlook Jefferies expectations JPMorgan price target Valuation analysis

Qualys Company Profile

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.