Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Director Sells $2,272,072.02 in Stock

Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY) Director Steven Sarowitz sold 12,846 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.87, for a total value of $2,272,072.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,377,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,242,942.03. This trade represents a 0.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Paylocity Stock Down 0.9%

PCTY opened at $168.50 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $153.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market cap of $8.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.50. Paylocity Holding Corporation has a 12 month low of $92.99 and a 12 month high of $178.53.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.22. Paylocity had a return on equity of 27.02% and a net margin of 15.23%. The company had revenue of $444.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $431.46 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Paylocity Holding Corporation will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paylocity from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Paylocity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Paylocity from $143.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Paylocity from $168.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Paylocity from $178.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Paylocity currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $172.82.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Paylocity by 18.9% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 49,614 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $5,360,000 after acquiring an additional 7,891 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Paylocity during the second quarter valued at approximately $54,906,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Paylocity by 181.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 32,688 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $3,411,000 after buying an additional 21,083 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in Paylocity in the second quarter worth approximately $20,119,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Paylocity in the second quarter worth approximately $430,315,000. 94.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paylocity News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp raised its price target on Paylocity from $178 to $190 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying approximately 13% upside from the referenced share price. The move reinforces expectations for further appreciation. KeyCorp analyst rating
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG Research reportedly raised its Paylocity price target from $180 to $200 while keeping a “buy” rating. The higher target reflects continued confidence in the company’s growth outlook. BTIG Research analyst rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Paylocity’s latest reported quarter showed stronger-than-expected results, with earnings per share of $1.84 versus a $1.62 consensus estimate and revenue up 11% year over year. Analysts expect approximately $6.92 in full-year EPS, providing a supportive fundamental backdrop.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Steven Sarowitz sold 8,900 shares for approximately $1.5 million on October 27, following sales of 13,700 shares on October 26 and 8,080 shares on October 22. The disclosed transactions totaled about $5.4 million and were executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sales reduced his holdings by less than 1%, but the repeated insider selling could weigh on sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha analysis downgraded Paylocity, arguing that the company needs more aggressive monetization. The report raises concerns that growth and revenue expansion may not fully justify the stock’s valuation. Paylocity Q1 preview and downgrade

About Paylocity

Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY) provides cloud-based human capital management (HCM) and payroll software for organizations. Its platform is designed to help employers manage payroll, human resources, employee benefits, talent acquisition, onboarding, performance, learning, and workforce administration through an integrated system.

The company also offers tools for time and labor management, scheduling, employee communications, engagement, surveys, expense management, and other workplace activities.