CDAM UK Ltd Purchases 108,880 Shares of Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS)

CDAM UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Qualys, Inc. (NASDAQ:QLYS) by 21.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 611,793 shares of the software maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 108,880 shares during the quarter. Qualys accounts for 12.9% of CDAM UK Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. CDAM UK Ltd’s holdings in Qualys were worth $85,786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Qualys in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Qualys during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Qualys by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 391 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake 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 last quarter. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Qualys during the 4th quarter worth approximately $91,000. 99.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Qualys Price Performance

QLYS opened at $118.59 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.50 and a beta of 0.56. Qualys, Inc. has a one year low of $116.67 and a one year high of $174.20. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $133.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.31.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last posted its 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 return on equity of 38.52% and a net margin of 28.59%. On average, analysts expect that Qualys, Inc. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Qualys

In related news, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 882 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.66, for a total transaction of $123,180.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 62,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,700,119.70. This trade represents a 1.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $15,530,036.88. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 26,595 shares of company stock valued at $3,691,922 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on QLYS. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Qualys from $162.00 to $135.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Qualys from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Qualys in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Northland Securities reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $146.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of Qualys in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Qualys from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus 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.