Horizon Investments LLC Makes New $1.51 Million Investment in Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS)

Horizon Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 10,770 shares of the software maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,510,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Qualys during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Qualys during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Qualys by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 391 shares of the software maker's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in Qualys by 56.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 439 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Qualys in the fourth quarter worth $91,000. 99.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Qualys Stock Performance

NASDAQ QLYS traded up $2.30 during trading on Monday, reaching $130.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 287,361 shares, compared to its average volume of 387,405. The business's fifty day moving average price is $135.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.24. Qualys, Inc. has a twelve month low of $119.17 and a twelve month high of $174.20. The firm has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00 and a beta of 0.56.

Remove Ads

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Qualys, Inc. will post 3.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,635 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.64, for a total value of $226,676.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 112,017 shares in the company, valued at $15,530,036.88. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Sumedh S. Thakar sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.17, for a total value of $995,190.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 246,144 shares in the company, valued at $34,994,292.48. The trade was a 2.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,595 shares of company stock valued at $3,691,922. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on QLYS. Northland Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $146.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of Qualys in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Qualys in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Qualys from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Qualys in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $146.14.

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.