Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) Lifted to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Pegasystems from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Pegasystems in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays upped their target price on Pegasystems from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Pegasystems from $77.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded Pegasystems from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $83.60.

Pegasystems Stock Performance

Shares of PEGA opened at $73.47 on Monday. Pegasystems has a 1 year low of $37.66 and a 1 year high of $74.50. The company has a market cap of $6.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 89.60 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $69.07 and a 200-day moving average of $63.54.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $351.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.55 million. Pegasystems had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 49.62%. Pegasystems’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.41) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Pegasystems will post 1.54 EPS for the current year.

Pegasystems Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Pegasystems

In other news, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $70,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 50,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,535,350. This represents 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 this link. In related news, insider Leon Trefler sold 752 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $54,211.68. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,412 shares in the company, valued at $2,769,121.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $70,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 50,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,535,350. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 45,955 shares of company stock worth $3,206,247. Insiders own 50.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pegasystems

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEGA. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new position in Pegasystems in the third quarter valued at about $2,638,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Pegasystems by 47.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 31,306 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,288,000 after buying an additional 10,103 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Pegasystems in the second quarter valued at about $378,000. Seaport Global Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Pegasystems by 83.9% during the second quarter. Seaport Global Advisors LLC now owns 15,200 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 6,935 shares during the period. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 38.9% during the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 43,790 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,651,000 after purchasing an additional 12,269 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 46.89% of the company’s stock.

Pegasystems Company Profile

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.