Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $27.62 Million Investment in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 296,385 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,623,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PEGA. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Pegasystems by 150.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 278 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 85.6% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 323 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Pegasystems by 48.0% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 789 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,791 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. 46.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pegasystems Stock Performance

NASDAQ PEGA opened at $68.34 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a PE ratio of 67.66 and a beta of 1.22. Pegasystems Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.55 and a 52-week high of $113.67. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.27.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The technology company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.20). Pegasystems had a return on equity of 32.09% and a net margin of 6.63%. As a group, analysts forecast that Pegasystems Inc. will post 1.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.015 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.09%. Pegasystems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.88%.

Insider Transactions at Pegasystems

In other Pegasystems news, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.75, for a total transaction of $139,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 21,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,481,838.75. This trade represents a 8.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Leon Trefler sold 2,049 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.65, for a total transaction of $155,006.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 52,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,935,237.35. This trade represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 80,791 shares of company stock worth $6,134,554. 50.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on PEGA shares. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Pegasystems from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Pegasystems from $90.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Pegasystems in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Pegasystems from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.27.

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.