Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) shares gapped up following a strong earnings report, with a quarterly EPS of $1.56 beating estimates by $0.18, and a revenue of $400.74 million surpassing analyst expectations.
• Wall Street analysts remain optimistic about the stock, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $223.38.
• Insider selling activity was noted, as SVP Andrew Cappotelli sold 1,717 shares at an average price of $176.74, reducing his position in the company.

Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $181.71, but opened at $197.78. Paylocity shares last traded at $187.50, with a volume of 137,667 shares.

The software maker reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.18. Paylocity had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 14.24%. The company had revenue of $400.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $388.25 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PCTY. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Paylocity from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Paylocity from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Paylocity in a report on Friday, July 18th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Paylocity from $226.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paylocity currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $223.19.

Insider Transactions at Paylocity

In other Paylocity news, SVP Andrew Cappotelli sold 1,717 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.74, for a total transaction of $303,462.58. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,112,573.22. The trade was a 12.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 21.91% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paylocity

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCTY. FMR LLC grew its position in Paylocity by 138.5% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 650,599 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $129,775,000 after acquiring an additional 377,835 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Paylocity by 7.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,312,832 shares of the software maker's stock worth $807,966,000 after buying an additional 283,430 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of Paylocity in the first quarter worth about $47,998,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its position in shares of Paylocity by 1,995.2% in the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 259,800 shares of the software maker's stock worth $47,073,000 after buying an additional 247,400 shares during the period. Finally, TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paylocity in the first quarter worth about $37,085,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.76% of the company's stock.

Paylocity Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $183.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $191.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $9.76 billion, a PE ratio of 44.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.54.

Paylocity Company Profile

Paylocity Holding Corporation engages in the provision of cloud-based human capital management and payroll software solutions for workforce in the United States. The company offers payroll software solution for global payroll, expense management, tax services, on demand payment, and garnishment managed services; and time and labor management software for time and attendance, scheduling, and time collection.