Next Century Growth Investors LLC Buys Shares of 116,439 Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Next Century Growth Investors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 116,439 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $10,852,000. Next Century Growth Investors LLC owned 0.14% of Pegasystems as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEGA. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of Pegasystems by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 19,597 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,826,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pegasystems by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,401 shares of the technology company's stock worth $783,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Pegasystems by 85.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 323 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Pegasystems by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,394 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,155,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 150.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. 46.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pegasystems Price Performance

Shares of PEGA traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $69.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 369,657 shares, compared to its average volume of 662,805. The company's 50 day moving average is $75.51 and its 200 day moving average is $85.30. The stock has a market cap of $5.93 billion, a PE ratio of 68.25 and a beta of 1.22. Pegasystems Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.55 and a 12-month high of $113.67.

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

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend 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 (DPR) is presently 11.88%.

Insider Activity at Pegasystems

In related news, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.25, for a total transaction of $144,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 56,534 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,084,581.50. This represents a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Alan Trefler sold 31,500 shares of Pegasystems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $2,234,295.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 17,247,614 shares in the company, valued at $1,223,373,261.02. This represents a 0.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 80,791 shares of company stock worth $6,134,554 in the last 90 days. 50.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Pegasystems from $103.00 to $97.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut Pegasystems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on shares of Pegasystems from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their target price on Pegasystems from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.27.

Pegasystems 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.