Quent Capital LLC Sells 12,179 Shares of Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Quent Capital LLC lessened its stake in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA - Free Report) by 94.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 725 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 12,179 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC's holdings in Pegasystems were worth $68,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,567,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pegasystems by 440.5% during the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 147,350 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $10,770,000 after buying an additional 120,090 shares during the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS purchased a new position in shares of Pegasystems in the third quarter worth about $6,688,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 85,505 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pegasystems in the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,096,000. Institutional investors own 46.89% of the company's stock.

Pegasystems Price Performance

NASDAQ:PEGA traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $85.02. 2,028,566 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 815,577. The company has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a PE ratio of 62.06 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $99.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.07. Pegasystems Inc. has a one year low of $54.55 and a one year high of $113.67.

Pegasystems (NASDAQ:PEGA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The technology company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.20). Pegasystems had a return on equity of 37.83% and a net margin of 8.29%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pegasystems Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pegasystems Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEGA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wedbush increased their price objective on Pegasystems from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Pegasystems in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Pegasystems from $99.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on Pegasystems from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Pegasystems from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Leon Trefler sold 752 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.83, for a total transaction of $70,560.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 37,973 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,563,006.59. This trade represents a 1.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Kenneth Stillwell sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.60, for a total transaction of $189,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 15,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,456,840. The trade was a 11.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,003 shares of company stock valued at $1,346,086. Insiders own 50.10% of the company's stock.

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.