Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $196.00 to $193.00. The stock had previously closed at $186.24, but opened at $180.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Paycom Software shares last traded at $164.00, with a volume of 463,044 shares trading hands.

PAYC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Paycom Software in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Paycom Software currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $256.53.

Institutional Trading of Paycom Software

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Paycom Software in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Paycom Software by 333.3% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 130 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Paycom Software by 83.5% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Paycom Software in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Paycom Software in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 87.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paycom Software Stock Down 10.5 %

The company has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.17. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $189.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $195.15.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The software maker reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.15. Paycom Software had a net margin of 20.12% and a return on equity of 24.60%. The business had revenue of $434.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $422.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.38 earnings per share. Paycom Software's revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Paycom Software, Inc. will post 5.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paycom Software Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 24th. Paycom Software's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.42%.

About Paycom Software

Paycom Software, Inc provides cloud-based human capital management (HCM) solution delivered as software-as-a-service for small to mid-sized companies in the United States. It offers functionality and data analytics that businesses need to manage the employment life cycle from recruitment to retirement.