Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $106.09, but opened at $99.80. Pegasystems shares last traded at $87.05, with a volume of 642,843 shares.

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 8.29% and a return on equity of 37.83%.

Pegasystems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Pegasystems's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEGA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Pegasystems from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Pegasystems from $99.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Pegasystems from $90.00 to $115.00 and gave the company 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. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Pegasystems from $103.00 to $97.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pegasystems currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.36.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.63, for a total value of $211,260.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,528,043.58. This represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Leon Trefler sold 752 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.83, for a total transaction of $70,560.16. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,563,006.59. This represents a 1.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,003 shares of company stock valued at $1,346,086 over the last 90 days. 50.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pegasystems

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Inspire Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems in the third quarter worth $229,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in Pegasystems by 166.8% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 70,432 shares of the technology company's stock worth $5,148,000 after acquiring an additional 44,035 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Pegasystems by 709.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 97,563 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $7,131,000 after buying an additional 85,505 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems during the 3rd quarter valued at about $146,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Pegasystems in the third quarter worth approximately $310,000. 46.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pegasystems Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.06 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $99.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.07.

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.