Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) Price Target Lowered to $66.00 at Barclays

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) had its price target lowered by Barclays from $68.00 to $66.00 in a research report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Pegasystems from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Pegasystems in a research note on Monday, March 4th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Pegasystems from a d+ rating to a c rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $65.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pegasystems presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $70.56.

Pegasystems Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of PEGA stock opened at $58.46 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $61.85 and a 200-day moving average of $52.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Pegasystems has a 12-month low of $37.66 and a 12-month high of $69.26. The company has a market capitalization of $4.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.34 and a beta of 1.06.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The technology company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.64. Pegasystems had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 39.30%. The business had revenue of $474.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $428.76 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Pegasystems will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pegasystems Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Pegasystems

In related news, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $127,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,585,110.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Richard H. Jones sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.39, for a total transaction of $633,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 379,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,066,520.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $127,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,884 shares in the company, valued at $1,585,110.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 43,792 shares of company stock worth $2,781,669. 50.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pegasystems

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Pegasystems by 80.1% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 508 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Pegasystems by 219.3% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 530 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Pegasystems in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Pegasystems in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Pegasystems in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. 46.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.