Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 561,807 Shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) by 398.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 702,838 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 561,807 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.82% of Pegasystems worth $65,505,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PEGA. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted 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 acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in 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 during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in Pegasystems by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,791 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.89% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Alan Trefler sold 31,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.38, for a total transaction of $2,437,470.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 17,308,786 shares in the company, valued at $1,339,353,860.68. This trade represents a 0.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.63, for a total transaction of $211,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,466 shares in the company, valued at $1,528,043.58. This represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 80,791 shares of company stock valued at $6,134,554 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 50.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEGA has been the topic of several research reports. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Pegasystems in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Pegasystems from $90.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pegasystems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.36.

Pegasystems Stock Down 7.3 %

NASDAQ PEGA traded down $4.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $63.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,520,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 647,086. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $83.58 and a 200 day moving average of $85.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.67 and a beta of 1.25. Pegasystems Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.55 and a twelve month high of $113.67.

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

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.015 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 11.88%.

About Pegasystems

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.