BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Stock

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $143.00 to $175.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the software maker’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target suggests a potential upside of 22.10% from the company’s current price.

PCTY has been the topic of several other reports. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Paylocity from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Paylocity from $155.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Paylocity from $133.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered Paylocity from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Citizens Jmp decreased their target price on Paylocity from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.76.

Paylocity Stock Performance

Shares of PCTY opened at $143.32 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.56 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $116.80 and a 200 day moving average of $114.33. Paylocity has a 12 month low of $92.99 and a 12 month high of $197.78.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $444.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $431.46 million. Paylocity had a net margin of 14.94% and a return on equity of 25.63%. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.56 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Paylocity will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Paylocity

In other news, SVP Andrew Cappotelli sold 899 shares of Paylocity stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.05, for a total value of $103,429.95. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 17,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,033,968.95. The trade was a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 19.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paylocity

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 5,925.0% in the first quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 241 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Paylocity during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Paylocity by 4,250.0% during the 1st quarter. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 261 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paylocity during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Paylocity by 500.0% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 342 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. 94.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Paylocity

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.