Paycom Software, Inc. $PAYC Stake Cut by First Trust Advisors LP

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors cut its Paycom stake by 22.3% in Q3, selling 399,420 shares and leaving 1,389,575 shares (about 2.47% of the company) valued at ~$289.2 million; institutional ownership stands near 87.8%.
• Several analysts have trimmed price targets (e.g., Jefferies to $130, Mizuho to $120) and the consensus rating is a Hold with an average target of $170.71 (5 Buy, 11 Hold, 1 Sell).
• Paycom modestly beat Q results (EPS $2.45 vs. $2.44; revenue $544.3M, +10.2% YoY), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.375 ($1.50 annual, ~1.1% yield).

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its holdings in shares of Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,389,575 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 399,420 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 2.47% of Paycom Software worth $289,226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Advisory Alpha LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paycom Software during the 3rd quarter valued at about $316,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 2.8% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 417,185 shares of the software maker's stock worth $86,884,000 after acquiring an additional 11,274 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Paycom Software by 52.4% in the third quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 925 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in Paycom Software in the third quarter valued at approximately $990,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 2,662.0% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 105,562 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $21,971,000 after purchasing an additional 101,740 shares during the last quarter. 87.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PAYC shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Paycom Software from $190.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research upgraded Paycom Software from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Paycom Software from $180.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Paycom Software from $200.00 to $184.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $245.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $170.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paycom Software

In other news, CFO Robert D. Foster sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.66, for a total value of $211,458.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 14,747 shares in the company, valued at $2,398,747.02. This represents a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 10.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Paycom Software Price Performance

Paycom Software stock opened at $138.09 on Friday. Paycom Software, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.90 and a 12-month high of $267.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.50 billion, a PE ratio of 17.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.71.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The software maker reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $544.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $542.79 million. Paycom Software had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 22.10%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Paycom Software, Inc. will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paycom Software Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be paid a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. Paycom Software's payout ratio is currently 18.54%.

Paycom Software Profile

Paycom Software, Inc NYSE: PAYC is a cloud-based human capital management (HCM) software provider that delivers an end-to-end solution for human resources, payroll, talent acquisition, time and labor management, and talent management. Its single-database platform enables organizations to process payroll, track time, administer benefits, and manage recruiting and employee development through a unified system. Paycom's software is designed to streamline administrative tasks, improve data accuracy, and provide real-time reporting and analytics to support strategic HR decisions.

The company's core offerings include payroll processing with built-in tax compliance, employee self-service functionality, automated time tracking, and customizable talent acquisition tools that allow employers to create and post job requisitions, screen candidates, and conduct onboarding electronically.

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