Axa S.A. Purchases 20,635 Shares of Paylocity Holding Co. (NASDAQ:PCTY)

AXA S.A. grew its stake in shares of Paylocity Holding Co. (NASDAQ:PCTY - Free Report) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 164,804 shares of the software maker's stock after acquiring an additional 20,635 shares during the period. AXA S.A. owned about 0.30% of Paylocity worth $32,873,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Paylocity by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,897 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $7,407,000 after acquiring an additional 5,609 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Paylocity by 207.0% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,836 shares of the software maker's stock worth $1,458,000 after buying an additional 5,958 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 43.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 384 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Paylocity during the 4th quarter worth about $231,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Paylocity during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,237,000. 94.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paylocity Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PCTY traded down $3.38 on Wednesday, hitting $183.60. 560,155 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 469,082. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company's 50 day moving average price is $188.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $196.56. Paylocity Holding Co. has a one year low of $129.94 and a one year high of $223.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.08, a PEG ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.58.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The software maker reported $2.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $454.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $441.77 million. Paylocity had a return on equity of 22.45% and a net margin of 14.76%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.21 EPS. Research analysts expect that Paylocity Holding Co. will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on PCTY shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Paylocity from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $258.00 price objective (up previously from $254.00) on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Paylocity from $255.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Paylocity from $250.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on Paylocity from $246.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $223.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven I. Sarowitz sold 26,252 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.91, for a total transaction of $5,116,777.32. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 420,000 shares in the company, valued at $81,862,200. This represents a 5.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 21.91% of the company's stock.

Paylocity Profile

Paylocity Holding Corporation engages in the provision of cloud-based human capital management and payroll software solutions for workforce in the United States. The company offers payroll software solution for global payroll, expense management, tax services, on demand payment, and garnishment managed services; and time and labor management software for time and attendance, scheduling, and time collection.