Federated Hermes Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Federated Hermes Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 788,916 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 19,085 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned 0.94% of Pegasystems worth $38,546,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEGA. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Pegasystems during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,054,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Pegasystems by 79.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 8,964 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $728,000 after purchasing an additional 3,982 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Pegasystems during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,059,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Pegasystems by 55.5% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 7,429 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $598,000 after purchasing an additional 2,653 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Pegasystems during the 1st quarter valued at about $205,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.89% of the company's stock.

Pegasystems Price Performance

NASDAQ PEGA traded down $0.79 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $57.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 358,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 355,764. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.14 and a beta of 1.06. Pegasystems Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.66 and a 1-year high of $69.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The company's 50-day moving average is $62.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.69.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The technology company reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $474.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $428.76 million. Pegasystems had a return on equity of 39.30% and a net margin of 4.73%. On average, equities analysts predict that Pegasystems Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Pegasystems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.21%. Pegasystems's payout ratio is currently 16.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEGA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Pegasystems from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Pegasystems from $65.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Pegasystems from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com raised Pegasystems from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pegasystems has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pegasystems

In other Pegasystems news, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 20,606 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.17, for a total transaction of $1,301,681.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 24,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,549,875.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Leon Trefler sold 752 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total value of $48,278.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 39,940 shares in the company, valued at $2,564,148. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 20,606 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.17, for a total value of $1,301,681.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 24,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,549,875.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,792 shares of company stock valued at $2,781,669 over the last quarter. 50.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.