Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Stock Price Target Lowered at Jefferies Financial Group

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) had its price target dropped by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from $235.00 to $215.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the software maker’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 22.78% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on QLYS. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Qualys in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Qualys from $180.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Qualys from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Qualys from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Qualys from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Qualys currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

Qualys Trading Down 13.5%

QLYS stock traded down $27.35 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $175.11. 1,554,784 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 761,970. Qualys has a 1-year low of $74.51 and a 1-year high of $235.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a PE ratio of 30.30 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.06.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The software maker reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $188.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.63 million. Qualys had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 29.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Qualys will post 5.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Qualys

In related news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 2,659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $14,300,489.28. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their position. The sale 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 dated Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.52, for a total value of $166,967.12. Following the transaction, the insider owned 57,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,955,582.64. This trade represents a 1.50% 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,672 shares of company stock worth $2,192,747. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualys

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Qualys during the second quarter worth $792,316,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Qualys in the second quarter valued at $197,624,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Qualys by 127.0% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 832,796 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $73,161,000 after purchasing an additional 465,952 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Qualys in the second quarter valued at $39,044,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Qualys during the 2nd quarter worth $21,852,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.31% of the company’s stock.

Qualys News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualys this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualys reported third-quarter revenue of about $188 million, up 11% year over year, and adjusted EPS of $2.12, topping analyst estimates. It also raised its FY2026 revenue outlook to $736.9 million–$738.9 million and forecast Q4 EPS above consensus. Qualys Q3 2026 financial results
• Positive Sentiment: The company expanded its mROC alliance with partners covering mobile, operational technology, IoT and identity security, broadening its risk-management offering. Qualys expands global mROC alliance
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst target changes were mixed: JPMorgan lowered its target to $215 and Morgan Stanley raised its target to $140 while retaining an underweight rating; RBC, Wedbush, Piper Sandler and Baird also raised targets but maintained neutral or sector-perform ratings.
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualys plans to participate in the UBS Global Technology and AI Conference, an investor-engagement event with no announced financial impact. Qualys investor conference announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the earnings beat and raised annual outlook, reports point to margin concerns and analyst warnings of slower Q4 billings growth. Those concerns appear to be outweighing the headline results and contributing to the negative reaction. Qualys declines as analysts highlight Q4 billings growth slowdown

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.