Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Price Target Lowered to $150.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) had its target price lowered by BMO Capital Markets from $185.00 to $150.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the software maker’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on PCTY. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Paylocity from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered Paylocity from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Paylocity in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stephens set a $160.00 target price on Paylocity in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $183.14.

Paylocity Stock Down 7.2%

NASDAQ PCTY opened at $117.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 27.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $145.27 and its 200 day moving average is $156.88. Paylocity has a twelve month low of $113.70 and a twelve month high of $223.80.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The software maker reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.28. Paylocity had a return on equity of 23.03% and a net margin of 14.19%.The business had revenue of $416.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $408.37 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Paylocity will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paylocity

In other news, CFO Ryan Glenn sold 1,737 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.65, for a total transaction of $249,520.05. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,093,945.85. This represents a 2.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 19.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paylocity

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Paylocity during the third quarter valued at approximately $104,657,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Paylocity by 500.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 449,935 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $81,438,000 after buying an additional 375,023 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 97.7% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 748,803 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $119,262,000 after buying an additional 369,975 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 311.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 432,070 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $65,891,000 after buying an additional 327,082 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 114.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 516,798 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $82,310,000 after acquiring an additional 275,959 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.76% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Paylocity

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat — Paylocity reported EPS of $1.85 vs. $1.57 expected and total revenue of $416.1M (up 10.4% YoY), showing solid recurring-revenue growth that supports long-term profitability. GlobeNewswire Q2 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cash flow and buybacks — trailing?12?month operating cash flow and free?cash?flow margins remain robust; company repurchased $100M (~690k shares) in Q2 and ~$600M (~3.7M shares) since May 2024, supporting EPS and shareholder returns. GlobeNewswire Q2 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Product and distribution drivers — management highlighted product expansion and growth through the broker channel as sources of upside to bookings and longer?term revenue. MSN deep dive
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials available — full slide deck and call transcript provide more detail on client metrics and product road map for investors who want to dig into assumptions. MarketBeat earnings packet Seeking Alpha transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance disappointed — management’s FY26 and Q3 revenue guidance came in below consensus (Q3 guidance midpoint well under street estimates), which is the main near?term catalyst behind the selloff as it suggests slower near?term top?line momentum. MarketBeat guidance summary
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price?target cuts — multiple firms (Citigroup, Truist, Citizens JMP, Mizuho, BTIG, BMO) reduced targets today (ratings largely remain buy/outperform), trimming upside and adding near?term selling pressure despite retained positive views. Benzinga coverage

About Paylocity

Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY) is a leading provider of cloud-based payroll and human capital management (HCM) software designed to streamline workforce administration for mid-sized organizations. The company’s integrated platform automates core functions such as payroll processing, benefits administration, time and labor tracking, and compliance management, enabling employers to manage employee data more efficiently and reduce administrative burdens.

In addition to payroll and HR capabilities, Paylocity offers talent management solutions including recruiting, onboarding, performance tracking, and learning management.