Sumedh S. Thakar Sells 7,000 Shares of Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS) Stock

Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS) CEO Sumedh S. Thakar sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.81, for a total transaction of $866,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,313 shares in the company, valued at $30,496,012.53. This trade represents a 2.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Qualys Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of QLYS stock traded up $0.73 on Tuesday, reaching $123.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 340,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 400,076. The company has a market capitalization of $4.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.66 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $130.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.16. Qualys, Inc. has a 12-month low of $112.61 and a 12-month high of $174.20.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The software maker reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.16). Qualys had a return on equity of 38.52% and a net margin of 28.59%. Research analysts expect that Qualys, Inc. will post 3.85 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Qualys

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of Qualys by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 16,640 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $2,333,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Qualys by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,749 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $806,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Qualys by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 391 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Qualys by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,089 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank raised its position in Qualys by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 932 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on QLYS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Qualys from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Qualys from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Qualys in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Qualys in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.36.

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.