Wasatch Advisors LP Trims Stock Holdings in Paylocity Holding Corporation $PCTY

Key Points

• Wasatch Advisors cut its Paylocity stake by 86.4% in the second quarter, selling 698,090 shares and retaining 109,922 shares valued at about $11.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.76% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 12 Buy ratings and five Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $160. Several firms recently raised their targets to between $154 and $175.
• Paylocity reported a quarterly earnings beat, with EPS of $1.84 versus the $1.62 estimate and revenue of $444.73 million, up 11% year over year. Shares opened at $145.67, while insiders continue to hold a 19.4% stake.

Wasatch Advisors LP lowered its position in shares of Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY - Free Report) by 86.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 109,922 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 698,090 shares during the quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP owned about 0.21% of Paylocity worth $11,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 5.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 136,388 shares of the software maker's stock worth $25,551,000 after purchasing an additional 7,594 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in Paylocity by 24.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,365 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Paylocity by 537.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 465 shares of the software maker's stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in Paylocity by 2,782.7% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 35,688 shares of the software maker's stock worth $6,466,000 after buying an additional 34,450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Paylocity by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 19,241 shares of the software maker's stock worth $3,486,000 after buying an additional 1,749 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Paylocity from $143.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on Paylocity from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Paylocity from $128.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Paylocity from $137.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.00.

Paylocity Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Paylocity stock opened at $145.67 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.60. The company has a market cap of $7.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.43 and a beta of 0.48. Paylocity Holding Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $92.99 and a fifty-two week high of $182.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.22. Paylocity had a return on equity of 27.02% and a net margin of 15.23%.The firm had revenue of $444.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $431.46 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.56 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Paylocity Holding Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paylocity news, SVP Andrew Cappotelli sold 899 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.05, for a total transaction of $103,429.95. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 17,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,033,968.95. This represents a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Steven I. Sarowitz sold 11,136 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.81, for a total value of $1,679,420.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,535,052 shares in the company, valued at approximately $683,931,192.12. The trade was a 0.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 19.40% of the company's stock.

Paylocity Company Profile

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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