Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Zscaler (NASDAQ:ZS)

Zscaler, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 18,085 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 54% compared to the typical volume of 11,712 call options.

Zscaler Stock Performance

Zscaler stock traded up $9.50 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $209.04. 2,259,067 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,035,944. The company has a market cap of $31.88 billion, a PE ratio of -498.84 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $179.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $181.76. Zscaler has a 12 month low of $153.45 and a 12 month high of $259.61.

Zscaler (NASDAQ:ZS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 3rd. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $592.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $567.46 million. Zscaler had a negative return on equity of 3.46% and a negative net margin of 2.66%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 30.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.17) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Zscaler will post -0.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Zscaler from $202.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Zscaler from $290.00 to $235.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Susquehanna reissued a "positive" rating and issued a $210.00 price target on shares of Zscaler in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Zscaler from $260.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on Zscaler in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Zscaler presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $216.73.

Insider Transactions at Zscaler

In other news, insider Michael J. Rich sold 4,813 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.28, for a total value of $824,370.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 103,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,686,201.52. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Robert Schlossman sold 4,947 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.22, for a total value of $842,078.34. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 107,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,254,563.02. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael J. Rich sold 4,813 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.28, for a total value of $824,370.64. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 103,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,686,201.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,502 shares of company stock worth $5,256,651. 19.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zscaler

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zscaler during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its holdings in Zscaler by 436.8% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 204 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Zscaler in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Zscaler by 21.3% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 382 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Zscaler by 613.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 385 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.45% of the company's stock.

About Zscaler

Zscaler, Inc operates as a cloud security company worldwide. The company offers Zscaler Internet Access solution that provides users, workloads, IoT, and OT devices secure access to externally managed applications, including software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications and internet destinations; and Zscaler Private Access solution, which is designed to provide access to managed applications hosted internally in data centers, and private or public clouds.