Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday.

PEGA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. William Blair raised shares of Pegasystems from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Pegasystems from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Pegasystems from $78.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. JMP Securities upgraded Pegasystems from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Pegasystems in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.60.

Pegasystems Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of PEGA opened at $73.52 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 89.66 and a beta of 1.07. Pegasystems has a 52 week low of $37.66 and a 52 week high of $74.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $69.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.74.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $351.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.55 million. Pegasystems had a return on equity of 49.62% and a net margin of 8.72%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.41) EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Pegasystems will post 1.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pegasystems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Pegasystems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pegasystems news, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.17, for a total value of $73,170.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,263,060.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Pegasystems news, insider Leon Trefler sold 752 shares of Pegasystems stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $54,211.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,769,121.08. 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 accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.17, for a total value of $73,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,262 shares in the company, valued at $1,263,060.54. This 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 45,955 shares of company stock worth $3,206,247. 50.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pegasystems

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Pegasystems by 4.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,369,237 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $347,067,000 after buying an additional 250,273 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pegasystems in the second quarter valued at $67,968,000. Luxor Capital Group LP raised its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Luxor Capital Group LP now owns 683,939 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $41,399,000 after buying an additional 49,861 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Pegasystems by 104.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 554,777 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,381,000 after acquiring an additional 283,508 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in Pegasystems by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 533,948 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,304,000 after acquiring an additional 34,416 shares in the last quarter. 46.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.