California State Teachers Retirement System Boosts Stock Position in Paylocity Holding Corporation $PCTY

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System increased its Paylocity stake by 18.9% in the first quarter to 49,614 shares valued at approximately $5.36 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.76% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with 12 Buy ratings, four Holds and one Sell, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $160 price target.
• Paylocity exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.84 in EPS versus a $1.62 consensus estimate and $444.73 million in revenue, up 11% year over year.

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY - Free Report) by 18.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,614 shares of the software maker's stock after purchasing an additional 7,891 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.09% of Paylocity worth $5,360,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Paylocity by 75.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 943,591 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $143,747,000 after acquiring an additional 404,605 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 117.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 817,209 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $124,625,000 after buying an additional 442,218 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Paylocity by 97.7% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Paylocity by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 659,472 shares of the software maker's stock worth $100,570,000 after acquiring an additional 42,725 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in Paylocity in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $104,657,000. 94.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PCTY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Paylocity from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 29th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Paylocity from $137.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp reduced their price objective on Paylocity from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on Paylocity from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $160.00.

Key Paylocity News

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results: Paylocity topped fiscal Q4 earnings and revenue estimates, while recurring revenue increased 12.4% year over year. Management also provided a fiscal 2027 outlook viewed as consistent with balanced growth. Paylocity Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Increase Y/Y
• Positive Sentiment: AI and product expansion: An earnings deep dive highlighted Paylocity’s efforts to use AI to broaden its payroll, human-capital-management and employee-experience offerings. Investors may view these initiatives as supporting customer retention, higher platform adoption and longer-term revenue growth. PCTY Q2 deep dive: AI-driven product expansion and balanced growth shape outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Broad analyst support: BMO Capital Markets raised its target to $175 from $143 and maintained an “outperform” rating. BTIG increased its target to $180 from $150 with a “buy” rating, while Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $165 from $140 and assigned an “overweight” rating. The revisions indicate improved confidence in Paylocity’s earnings trajectory. Analyst price-target updates
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor focus: The earnings call and presentation emphasized execution against the fiscal 2027 plan, recurring-revenue trends and the pace at which AI-enabled products contribute to growth. Paylocity Q4 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Paylocity Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PCTY opened at $151.49 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $118.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Paylocity Holding Corporation has a 1-year low of $92.99 and a 1-year high of $190.52. The company has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.60 and a beta of 0.48.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.22. Paylocity had a return on equity of 27.02% and a net margin of 15.23%.The business had revenue of $444.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $431.46 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Paylocity Holding Corporation will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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