Paymentus (NYSE:PAY) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Paymentus from “Buy” to “Hold.” The broader analyst consensus is also “Hold,” with a consensus price target of $38.67.
• Paymentus reported quarterly results above expectations, with EPS of $0.25 versus the $0.19 estimate and revenue of $360.74 million, up 28.8% year over year.
• The stock opened at $36.15, down 1.7%, while insiders have sold roughly $5.7 million worth of shares over the past 90 days; institutional investors own 78.38% of the company.

Paymentus (NYSE:PAY - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

PAY has been the topic of several other research reports. Wolfe Research lowered Paymentus from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Paymentus from $32.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Paymentus from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Paymentus from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paymentus presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $38.67.

Paymentus Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:PAY opened at $36.15 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $34.01 and a 200-day moving average of $27.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a PE ratio of 54.77 and a beta of 1.31. Paymentus has a 12 month low of $20.11 and a 12 month high of $45.31.

Paymentus (NYSE:PAY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.06. Paymentus had a net margin of 6.24% and a return on equity of 15.26%. The business had revenue of $360.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $345.44 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.11 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Paymentus will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paymentus

In other news, Director Gary Trainor sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.79, for a total transaction of $3,263,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 509,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,798,331.52. This represents a 13.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Sanjay Kalra sold 2,909 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.25, for a total value of $117,087.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 505,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,350,279.25. The trade was a 0.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 147,909 shares of company stock valued at $5,735,337. Insiders own 55.75% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paymentus

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PAY. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in Paymentus during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paymentus in the 4th quarter worth about $80,000. Orange County Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Paymentus during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $150,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Paymentus by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,050 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Paymentus during the 2nd quarter worth $204,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paymentus Company Profile

Paymentus is a U.S.-based financial technology company that specializes in cloud-native bill payment and presentment solutions. Its platform enables businesses and government entities to manage the entire payment lifecycle, from electronic bill presentment and real-time payment processing to reconciliation and reporting. Through web portals, mobile applications, interactive voice response (IVR) systems and in-person channels, Paymentus helps clients streamline accounts receivable operations, enhance customer engagement and reduce operational costs.

Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, Paymentus has built a modular suite of services that can be tailored to the needs of various industries.

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