On September 14, 2023, it was reported that the New York State Common Retirement Fund had reduced its holdings in Zscaler, Inc. by 9.7% during the first quarter of the year. According to the company’s 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the institutional investor owned a total of 131,910 shares of Zscaler’s stock after selling 14,221 shares during that period. The value of these shares amounted to $15,411,000 at the time of the filing.
Zscaler is a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol ZS. It recently released its quarterly earnings data on September 5th. The results showed that the company had surpassed analysts’ expectations with an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.64 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.15. Zscaler also reported revenue of $455 million for the quarter, surpassing analyst estimates of $430.38 million.
Despite these positive indicators, Zscaler had a negative net margin of 12.51% and a negative return on equity of 34.75%. However, it’s worth noting that compared to the same period in the previous year, Zscaler’s revenue had increased by an impressive 43.0% on a year-over-year basis.
Sell-side analysts have projected that Zscaler will post earnings per share of -1 for this current year. While this may seem concerning at first glance due to its negative value, it is essential to consider factors such as growth potential and overall market conditions when evaluating a company’s performance.
The reduction in holdings by the New York State Common Retirement Fund may be seen as significant news for investors following Zscalers’ recent earnings report and financial performance throughout this year’s first quarter. It is important to bear in mind that such moves by institutional investors like the New York State Common Retirement Fund are subject to various factors, including portfolio diversification strategies and changes in market conditions.
As always, it is advisable for investors to conduct thorough research and analysis before making any investment decisions. This includes considering a company’s financial performance, the market outlook, and any relevant news or developments that may impact its future prospects.
Zscaler, Inc.
ZS
Buy
Updated on: 05/12/2023
Financial Health
Healthy
Debt to equity ratio: Strong Buy
Price to earnings ratio: Strong Sell
Price to book ratio: Strong Buy
DCF: Strong Buy
ROE: Sell
Zscaler’s Rising Appeal: Institutional Investors, Analyst Ratings, and Insider Transactions
Zscaler, Inc., a leading cloud security company, has been attracting significant attention from institutional investors and hedge funds recently. Various investment management firms have either increased or decreased their stakes in the company, indicating a bustling interest in Zscaler’s stock.
For instance, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Zscaler by 2.7% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 67 shares and bringing its total ownership to 2,558 shares valued at $617,000. Van ECK Associates Corp followed suit by increasing its stake by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, buying an extra 85 shares to reach a total of 1,006 shares valued at $113,000. Utah Retirement Systems also added to its Zscaler holdings by purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter, resulting in a total ownership of 15,042 shares worth $1,683,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. and US Bancorp DE also decided to boost their positions in Zscaler by acquiring additional shares during the first quarter.
These notable moves by institutional investors have contributed to Zscaler’s appeal in the market. Currently, approximately 46.45% of the company’s stock is owned by these shareholders.
Equities analysts have also chimed in on Zscaler’s prospects. Scotiabank raised their price target on Zscaler from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on September 6th. BTIG Research increased its price objective to $191 and reiterated their “buy” rating on September 6th as well. Barclays joined them in increasing their price target from $160 to $176 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating on September 6th too.
Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed their “buy” rating while setting a target price of $185 on September 1st. Similarly, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target from $180 to $185 and reiterated a “buy” rating on September 6th.
With fourteen analysts giving the stock a hold rating, twenty-two indicating a buy rating, and one issuing a strong buy rating, it is evident that Zscaler has garnered significant investor interest. The consensus among analysts is that Zscaler is a promising investment opportunity, backed by a moderate buy rating and an average target price of $182.03 according to data from Bloomberg.
In other news about Zscaler, COO Dali Rajic recently sold 22,000 shares of the company’s stock at an average price of $157.41, amounting to a total value of $3,463,020. Following the transaction, his holdings now consist of 284,406 shares valued at approximately $44,768,348.46. The SEC filing revealed this information to the public.
Furthermore, CEO Jagtar Singh Chaudhry also made some moves in the shares market by selling 5,440 shares in June at an average price of $156.64 for a total value of $852,121.60. His remaining stake amounts to 374,935 shares valued at about $58,729,818.40.
It’s worth noting that insiders have been active in offloading company stocks in recent months with 128,483 shares sold during the last three months alone. These transactions sum up to roughly $19 million in insider sales—an intriguing development for potential investors looking for insights into company dynamics.
On Thursday morning, ZS opened at $158.40—a solid starting point for its trading day given its market capitalization of approximately $23.11 billion. However positive these figures may be for shareholders and potential investors alike: it begs the question—what future events will shape Zscaler’s future direction and market value?
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