Zscaler Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:ZS)

Zscaler, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZS) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors acquired 47,656 put options on the company. This is an increase of 74% compared to the typical daily volume of 27,414 put options.

Key Headlines Impacting Zscaler

Here are the key news stories impacting Zscaler this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zscaler and Bharti Airtel launched an AI & Cyber Threat Research Center to jointly research AI-enabled threats and defenses — a partnership that expands Zscaler’s enterprise reach in APAC and strengthens its positioning in AI-related security services. Zscaler and Bharti Airtel announce launch of AI & Cyber Threat Research Center
• Positive Sentiment: Zscaler expanded global data‑sovereignty capabilities on its Zero Trust Exchange (new control/logging planes, Canada deployment planned), which supports sales to regulated customers and can drive longer-term subscription revenue growth. Zscaler (ZS) Expands Global Data Sovereignty Capabilities on Zero Trust Exchange
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary singled Zscaler out as a cybersecurity winner in the current AI-driven market shift (zero‑trust access control seen as increasingly valuable), which could support re-rating over time if AI adoption fuels security spend. Software Stocks Are Down—Expert Says These 3 Names Still Look Strong
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Raj Judge sold 2,488 shares at ~$156.59 (~$389.6k); his holdings fell ~3.53% (SEC Form 4). Insider sales by senior leaders can weigh on near-term sentiment even if amounts are small vs. their remaining stakes. SEC Form 4 – Raj Judge
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Robert Schlossman sold 2,263 shares at ~$156.59 (~$354.4k), reducing his stake ~3.03% (SEC Form 4). SEC Form 4 – Robert Schlossman
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Kevin Rubin sold 1,682 shares at ~$156.59 (~$263.4k), a ~3.49% reduction in his direct holdings (SEC Form 4). SEC Form 4 – Kevin Rubin
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Jagtar Singh Chaudhry sold 1,941 shares at ~$156.59 (~$303.9k), a 0.56% reduction in his position (SEC Form 4). CEO sales often draw investor attention despite small percentage changes. SEC Form 4 – Jagtar Singh Chaudhry

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on ZS shares. Zacks Research lowered Zscaler from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Zscaler from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Zscaler from $310.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Zscaler from $290.00 to $257.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Zscaler from $340.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.13.

Insider Activity

In other Zscaler news, CFO Kevin Rubin sold 1,682 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $263,384.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 46,479 shares in the company, valued at $7,278,146.61. The trade was a 3.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert Schlossman sold 2,263 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $354,363.17. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 72,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,335,550.10. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 9,027 shares of company stock valued at $1,459,333 over the last quarter. 17.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zscaler

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ZS. Binnacle Investments Inc bought a new position in Zscaler during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Zscaler by 145.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 86 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zscaler during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zscaler during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new position in Zscaler during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 46.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zscaler Stock Down 0.0%

ZS stock opened at $155.99 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $180.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $244.35. The company has a market capitalization of $25.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -371.40 and a beta of 1.07. Zscaler has a twelve month low of $140.56 and a twelve month high of $336.99.

Zscaler (NASDAQ:ZS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $815.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $798.92 million. Zscaler had a negative net margin of 2.25% and a positive return on equity of 0.06%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.78 earnings per share. Zscaler has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.000-1.010 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.990-4.020 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Zscaler will post -0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zscaler Company Profile

Zscaler is a cloud security company that delivers a cloud-native platform to protect users, applications and data as organizations move away from traditional, network-centric security architectures. The company focuses on a zero trust approach that assumes no implicit trust for users or devices, providing secure access to the internet, SaaS applications and private applications regardless of where users are located. Zscaler positions its services as an alternative to legacy appliances and site-centric VPNs, aiming to simplify security while enabling modern, distributed workforces.

Key offerings are built around the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange, a multi-tenant cloud platform that enforces security and access policies in-line.