Fox Run Management L.L.C. Invests $285,000 in Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,035 shares of the software maker's stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Qualys in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,739,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Qualys in the fourth quarter worth approximately $510,000. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of Qualys by 51.4% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 46,726 shares of the software maker's stock worth $6,552,000 after purchasing an additional 15,866 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Qualys by 151.2% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 17,258 shares of the software maker's stock worth $2,420,000 after purchasing an additional 10,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Qualys by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 5,213 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. 99.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Qualys Stock Performance

Shares of QLYS traded up $2.74 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $128.67. 291,689 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 395,299. The stock's fifty day moving average is $134.91 and its 200 day moving average is $136.51. Qualys, Inc. has a 1-year low of $119.17 and a 1-year high of $174.20. The stock has a market cap of $4.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.67 and a beta of 0.56.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The software maker reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.16). Qualys had a net margin of 28.59% and a return on equity of 38.52%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Qualys, Inc. will post 3.85 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on QLYS shares. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded Qualys from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Qualys in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Qualys from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Qualys from $162.00 to $135.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Qualys currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $144.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 524 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.38, for a total transaction of $67,795.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 65,053 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,416,557.14. This trade represents a 0.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sumedh S. Thakar sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.49, for a total transaction of $941,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 225,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,321,173.97. The trade was a 3.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,595 shares of company stock valued at $3,691,922 over the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Qualys

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.