Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after Citigroup raised their price target on the stock from $172.00 to $196.00. The stock had previously closed at $172.25, but opened at $189.68. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Paycom Software shares last traded at $210.37, with a volume of 315,446 shares.

PAYC has been the topic of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Paycom Software from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Paycom Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $160.00 to $191.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Paycom Software from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $190.80.

Insider Activity at Paycom Software

In other Paycom Software news, insider Bradley Scott Smith sold 1,524 shares of Paycom Software stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.62, for a total value of $240,212.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,769 shares in the company, valued at $2,327,889.78. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Paycom Software news, CEO Chad R. Richison sold 1,950 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.43, for a total value of $336,238.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,750,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $474,339,411.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bradley Scott Smith sold 1,524 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.62, for a total value of $240,212.88. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 14,769 shares in the company, valued at $2,327,889.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 71,906 shares of company stock worth $11,731,540. Insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paycom Software

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Paycom Software by 3.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 6,544 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Paycom Software by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 9,035 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,798,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 3,220 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Paycom Software by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,796 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $556,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paycom Software in the first quarter worth $256,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.77% of the company’s stock.

Paycom Software Stock Up 0.8 %

The firm has a market cap of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 25.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $167.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.35.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The software maker reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.07. Paycom Software had a return on equity of 33.34% and a net margin of 25.78%. The company had revenue of $437.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $436.19 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Paycom Software, Inc. will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paycom Software Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be paid a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. Paycom Software’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.05%.

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.