Nuveen Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 222,709 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 4,753 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.26% of Pegasystems worth $20,756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEGA. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter worth about $204,000. Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter worth about $267,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Choreo LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter worth about $229,000. Finally, Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter worth about $1,029,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.89% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $119.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays restated a "positive" rating on shares of Pegasystems in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $100.27.

Pegasystems Stock Up 0.1%

Pegasystems stock traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $96.09. 1,079,262 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 753,700. The company has a market cap of $8.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 95.14 and a beta of 1.14. Pegasystems Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.71 and a twelve month high of $113.67. The company has a fifty day moving average of $81.55 and a 200-day moving average of $88.32.

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.015 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.06%. Pegasystems's payout ratio is 5.83%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Efstathios A. Kouninis sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $46,750.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,750. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Alan Trefler sold 31,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $2,234,295.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 17,247,614 shares in the company, valued at $1,223,373,261.02. This trade represents a 0.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 97,520 shares of company stock worth $7,364,405. 49.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Pegasystems

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.