Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Stock Price Down 7.3% on Analyst Downgrade

Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY) was down 7.3% during mid-day trading on Friday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $180.00 to $150.00. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Paylocity traded as low as $122.46 and last traded at $117.7590. Approximately 68,597 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 675,045 shares. The stock had previously closed at $127.05.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on PCTY. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Paylocity in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings downgraded Paylocity from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Barclays set a $146.00 price target on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $150.00 target price on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Friday. Finally, JMP Securities set a $245.00 price target on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paylocity presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paylocity news, CFO Ryan Glenn sold 1,737 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.65, for a total value of $249,520.05. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 77,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,093,945.85. The trade was a 2.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 19.40% of the company’s stock.

Paylocity News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat: Paylocity reported EPS of $1.85 vs. consensus ~$1.57 and total revenue of $416.1M (up ~10.4% YoY), showing continued top-line growth and margin strength; the company highlighted strong operating cash flow and free cash flow margins. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Large buybacks: Repurchased ~$100M (690k shares) in the quarter and ~$600M (3.7M shares) since May 2024, supporting EPS and signaling management confidence in long-term value. Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and transcripts available — management discussed revenue trends, product/AI initiatives and channel commentary; these provide color but the market reaction centers on guidance. Earnings Highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Full call transcripts and slide deck published (useful if you want mgmt remarks and KPIs). Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Weak guidance vs. Street: Paylocity issued FY and Q3 revenue ranges below consensus (Q3 revenue guide ~$457.5M–$462.5M vs. est. ~$483.8M; FY revenue guidance implied ~ $1.6B vs. consensus ~ $1.7B), which investors viewed as the main catalyst for the pullback. Earnings / Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price-target cuts: Multiple brokers (BMO, BTIG, Mizuho) cut targets to $150 (from ~$180–185) while largely maintaining buy/outperform ratings — the trims lower the implied upside and likely fed short-term selling pressure. Benzinga The Fly

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paylocity

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Paylocity in the third quarter valued at approximately $104,657,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Paylocity by 500.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 449,935 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $81,438,000 after buying an additional 375,023 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Paylocity by 97.7% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 748,803 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $119,262,000 after buying an additional 369,975 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Paylocity by 311.5% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 432,070 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $65,891,000 after buying an additional 327,082 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in shares of Paylocity by 114.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 516,798 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $82,310,000 after acquiring an additional 275,959 shares in the last quarter. 94.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paylocity Stock Down 8.4%

The firm has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a PE ratio of 29.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $145.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.32.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The software maker reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $408.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $399.53 million. Paylocity had a return on equity of 22.07% and a net margin of 13.75%.Paylocity’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Paylocity Holding Corporation will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paylocity Company Profile

Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY) is a leading provider of cloud-based payroll and human capital management (HCM) software designed to streamline workforce administration for mid-sized organizations. The company’s integrated platform automates core functions such as payroll processing, benefits administration, time and labor tracking, and compliance management, enabling employers to manage employee data more efficiently and reduce administrative burdens.

In addition to payroll and HR capabilities, Paylocity offers talent management solutions including recruiting, onboarding, performance tracking, and learning management.