Guggenheim Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) Stock Price

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) had its price target dropped by research analysts at Guggenheim from $210.00 to $180.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the software maker’s stock. Guggenheim’s price target indicates a potential upside of 43.36% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on PAYC. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Paycom Software from $200.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $175.00 to $137.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Paycom Software from $185.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $235.00 to $220.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $191.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $168.57.

Paycom Software Trading Up 4.8%

NYSE:PAYC opened at $125.56 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $150.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.09. Paycom Software has a twelve month low of $104.90 and a twelve month high of $267.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.79.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The software maker reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $544.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $542.79 million. Paycom Software had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 22.10%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Paycom Software will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paycom Software news, CFO Robert D. Foster sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.66, for a total transaction of $211,458.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,398,747.02. This represents a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 10.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PAYC. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 7.6% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 789 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Paycom Software by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 1,425 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Paycom Software by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Wallace Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wallace Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,262 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Paycom Software by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,624 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. 87.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Paycom Software

Here are the key news stories impacting Paycom Software this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates: PAYC reported $2.45 EPS and revenue up ~10% y/y, beating consensus and showing margin expansion — supportive near‑term fundamentals. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Independent study highlights product ROI: A Forrester‑commissioned study found Paycom’s IWant AI delivers significant three‑year ROI for clients — a credibility boost for growth/product story. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts remain bullish: Guggenheim, KeyCorp and BTIG maintained buy/overweight views (despite trimming targets), signaling pockets of conviction that upside remains for longer‑term investors. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and idea pieces: Several outlets (Zacks, Seeking Alpha, Barchart) frame PAYC as a potential value/recovery play after the selloff — useful for investors assessing risk/reward but not immediate catalysts. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Weak 2026 revenue guidance spooked investors: Paycom’s FY‑2026 revenue outlook was perceived as conservative/short of consensus, which triggered the initial selloff and remains the primary negative catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analyst price‑target cuts and neutral/hold moves: Several firms (Citigroup, Jefferies, Cantor Fitzgerald, Mizuho, BMO and others) lowered targets and moved to neutral/hold — increasing selling pressure and signaling reduced near‑term expectations. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Shares reached a fresh near‑term low after guidance and analyst reactions, amplifying momentum selling and headline sensitivity. Article Title

Paycom Software Company Profile

Paycom Software, Inc (NYSE: PAYC) is a cloud-based human capital management (HCM) software provider that delivers an end-to-end solution for human resources, payroll, talent acquisition, time and labor management, and talent management. Its single-database platform enables organizations to process payroll, track time, administer benefits, and manage recruiting and employee development through a unified system. Paycom’s software is designed to streamline administrative tasks, improve data accuracy, and provide real-time reporting and analytics to support strategic HR decisions.

The company’s core offerings include payroll processing with built-in tax compliance, employee self-service functionality, automated time tracking, and customizable talent acquisition tools that allow employers to create and post job requisitions, screen candidates, and conduct onboarding electronically.