Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $87.74 and last traded at $87.71, with a volume of 105160 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.68.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PEGA has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pegasystems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Pegasystems from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Pegasystems from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. William Blair upgraded Pegasystems from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on Pegasystems from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.90.

Pegasystems Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $73.95 and a 200 day moving average of $66.33. The firm has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.31 and a beta of 1.06.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.04. Pegasystems had a net margin of 8.29% and a return on equity of 37.83%. The company had revenue of $325.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $326.16 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Pegasystems Inc. will post 1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pegasystems Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were paid a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.13%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Pegasystems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pegasystems news, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.41, for a total transaction of $70,410.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 46,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,274,417.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Efstathios A. Kouninis sold 528 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.00, for a total value of $43,824.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.41, for a total value of $70,410.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,274,417.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 41,093 shares of company stock worth $3,042,389 in the last three months. Insiders own 50.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pegasystems

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PEGA. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Pegasystems by 49.1% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 656 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Pegasystems by 15,120.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 761 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the third quarter worth $57,000. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Pegasystems by 64.0% in the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 869 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Pegasystems in the third quarter valued at about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.