Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Releases Q3 2026 Earnings Guidance

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) updated its third quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 1.910-1.980 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 1.800. The company issued revenue guidance of $185.5 million-$187.5 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $182.6 million. Qualys also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 7.740-7.880 EPS.

Qualys Trading Up 15.0%

Shares of QLYS traded up $24.12 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $185.18. The stock had a trading volume of 868,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 766,463. The firm has a market cap of $6.52 billion, a PE ratio of 33.25 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.99. Qualys has a one year low of $74.51 and a one year high of $201.54.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. Qualys had a return on equity of 37.15% and a net margin of 29.41%.The firm had revenue of $182.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Qualys has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.740-7.880 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Qualys will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial set a $185.00 price target on Qualys in a report on Wednesday. Northland Securities set a $208.00 target price on shares of Qualys in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson set a $165.00 price objective on Qualys in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Qualys from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, William Blair downgraded Qualys from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $168.87.

Insider Transactions at Qualys

In other news, CEO Sumedh S. Thakar sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $4,050,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 196,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,552,610. This represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Bruce K. Posey sold 882 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.17, for a total transaction of $139,505.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 62,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,915,519.13. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 76,855 shares of company stock valued at $9,706,670. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Qualys News

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualys this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations. Qualys reported earnings of $1.98 per share, above the $1.78 analyst consensus and up from $1.68 a year earlier. Revenue increased 11.1% year over year to $182.18 million, exceeding estimates of $178.57 million. Qualys Tops Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Full-year guidance was raised substantially. Qualys now expects 2026 revenue of $732 million to $738 million, compared with its prior range of $721 million to $727 million. Full-year EPS guidance of $7.74 to $7.88 is also above the $7.16 consensus estimate. Third-quarter revenue and EPS forecasts likewise topped Wall Street expectations. Qualys Announces Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability and demand trends remain supportive. Adjusted EBITDA reached $83.8 million. Management highlighted AI-related security products, Risk Operations Center adoption, federal business momentum, partner execution and early QFlex engagement as growth opportunities.
• Positive Sentiment: New vulnerability-detection technology could support future sales. Qualys launched InstaScan, designed to identify newly disclosed vulnerabilities rapidly using existing asset telemetry and AI-driven correlation. Qualys Launches InstaScan
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor outreach is scheduled. Qualys management will participate in a fireside chat and hold one-on-one meetings at Canaccord Genuity’s 46th Annual Growth Conference. The event may provide additional visibility but does not immediately change financial forecasts. Qualys to Speak at Upcoming Investor Conference
• Negative Sentiment: An insider sale provides a modest counterpoint. CFO Joo Mi Kim sold 1,627 shares for approximately $249,000 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale represented about 2.1% of her holdings and is less concerning than an unexpected discretionary sale, but continued insider selling may temper sentiment.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Qualys by 24.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,372,587 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $182,417,000 after buying an additional 266,924 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Qualys by 2.8% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,081,015 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $143,051,000 after acquiring an additional 29,342 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Qualys by 46.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,012,100 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $144,133,000 after acquiring an additional 323,324 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Qualys by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 717,381 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $95,344,000 after acquiring an additional 21,649 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Qualys in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $78,591,000. 99.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Qualys Company Profile

Qualys, Inc (NASDAQ: QLYS) is a leading provider of cloud-based security and compliance solutions designed to help organizations streamline their IT security programs. Operating on a unified, modular platform, Qualys offers continuous visibility into global IT assets through a combination of lightweight cloud agents and on-premises scanner appliances. The platform supports an array of security and compliance use cases, enabling real-time detection of vulnerabilities, policy violations and misconfigurations across on-premises, cloud and hybrid environments.

The company’s flagship Qualys Cloud Platform delivers a suite of integrated applications, including vulnerability management, detection and response (VMDR), policy compliance, web application scanning, file integrity monitoring, asset inventory and container security.