Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) Issues Q2 2026 Earnings Guidance

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) issued an update on its second quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 1.730-1.800 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 1.690. The company issued revenue guidance of $177.5 million-$179.5 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $177.0 million. Qualys also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 7.440-7.650 EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

QLYS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Qualys from $117.00 to $113.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Qualys from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Qualys in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Qualys from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Qualys from $139.00 to $135.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.77.

Qualys Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of QLYS stock opened at $92.14 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $89.99 and a 200-day moving average of $118.04. The company has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94 and a beta of 0.58. Qualys has a 52 week low of $74.51 and a 52 week high of $155.47.

Qualys (NASDAQ:QLYS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The software maker reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $175.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.66 million. Qualys had a net margin of 29.64% and a return on equity of 37.65%. Qualys’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Qualys has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.440-7.650 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.730-1.800 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Qualys will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Qualys

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualys this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — GAAP EPS $1.95 vs. $1.81 consensus and revenue $175.6M (up ~9.8% YoY), with healthy margins that validate the business model. Qualys Announces First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised guidance — Q2 EPS guide 1.730–1.800 (vs. ~1.69 consensus) and FY 2026 EPS guide 7.440–7.650 (above ~6.98 consensus); FY revenue guide $721.0M–$727.0M. The upside revision is a key driver for the stock move. Qualys Announces First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnership with Converge to offer insurance-linked cyber risk solutions that reward proven security posture — a potential commercial differentiator and incremental revenue stream. Qualys and Converge Launch Joint Offering
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reaction mixed — William Blair’s Jonathan Ho maintained a Hold, noting solid near-term results but uncertainty around long‑term growth, which tempers investor enthusiasm. Jonathan Ho Maintains Hold on Qualys
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider coverage and analyst notes (Zacks, Chron, MSN) largely echo the beat + raised guidance narrative; useful for volume but not new information. Qualys (QLYS) Q1 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Longer‑term questions remain — some analysts cite an uncertain growth runway and the stock is still below its 200‑day moving average (~$118), which could limit sustained upside until growth visibility improves. Qualys: Q1 Earnings Snapshot

Institutional Trading of Qualys

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Qualys during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Qualys by 204.3% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 213 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new position in Qualys in the third quarter worth approximately $57,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Qualys by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 481 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Qualys by 74.2% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 547 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the period. 99.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Qualys

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.