Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS) Shares Acquired by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its stake in shares of Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS - Free Report) by 25.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 56,223 shares of the software maker's stock after purchasing an additional 11,506 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.15% of Qualys worth $7,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of QLYS. Trust Point Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Qualys during the 4th quarter valued at about $376,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its stake in Qualys by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,049,623 shares of the software maker's stock worth $147,178,000 after acquiring an additional 123,530 shares during the period. Willis Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in Qualys by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 10,629 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,490,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI boosted its position in shares of Qualys by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 114,700 shares of the software maker's stock worth $16,083,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of Qualys by 62.5% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 52,024 shares of the software maker's stock worth $7,295,000 after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Qualys from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Qualys from $120.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut 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. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Qualys from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $146.57.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 882 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.66, for a total value of $123,180.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 62,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,700,119.70. The trade was a 1.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,332 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.37, for a total transaction of $209,616.84. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 113,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,885,415.24. This trade represents a 1.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 28,746 shares of company stock valued at $4,158,713. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Qualys Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:QLYS traded up $3.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $141.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 347,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 391,542. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a PE ratio of 30.35 and a beta of 0.56. Qualys, Inc. has a 12 month low of $119.17 and a 12 month high of $174.31. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $141.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.43.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The software maker reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.16). Qualys had a return on equity of 39.64% and a net margin of 28.59%. Research analysts anticipate that Qualys, Inc. will post 4.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.