Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA) Stake Increased by Castleark Management LLC

Castleark Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) by 14.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 95,630 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 12,220 shares during the quarter. Castleark Management LLC owned about 0.11% of Pegasystems worth $8,913,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pegasystems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Pegasystems by 74.6% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 43,995 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,100,000 after acquiring an additional 18,800 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in Pegasystems by 298.6% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 25,540 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,380,000 after acquiring an additional 19,132 shares during the last quarter. Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Pegasystems during the 4th quarter worth $267,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,791 shares of the technology company's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.89% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Efstathios A. Kouninis sold 658 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.90, for a total transaction of $59,154.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $89,900. The trade was a 39.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Efstathios A. Kouninis sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.25, for a total transaction of $49,625.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 129,020 shares of company stock worth $9,801,875 over the last quarter. 49.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Pegasystems Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of PEGA stock traded down $3.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $96.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 810,617 shares, compared to its average volume of 752,393. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.22 billion, a PE ratio of 95.09 and a beta of 1.14. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $81.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.26. Pegasystems Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.71 and a 12-month high of $113.67.

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a $0.015 dividend. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Pegasystems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PEGA. Wall Street Zen raised Pegasystems from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Pegasystems in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (up from $85.00) on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Thursday, April 24th. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $118.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Pegasystems from $119.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $100.27.

Pegasystems Company Profile

Pegasystems Inc develops, markets, licenses, hosts, and supports enterprise software in the United States, rest of the Americas, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. The company provides Pega Infinity, a software portfolio comprising of Pega Customer Decision Hub, a real-time AI-powered decision engine to enhance customer acquisition and experiences across inbound, outbound, and paid media channels; Pega Customer Service to anticipate customer needs, connect customers to people and systems, and automate customer interactions to evolve the customer service experience, as well as to allow enterprises to deliver interactions across channels and enhance employee productivity; and Pega Platform, an intelligent automation software for increasing efficiency of clients' processes and workflows.