Quent Capital LLC Cuts Stake in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA)

Quent Capital LLC cut its holdings in Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ:PEGA) by 36.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 462 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 263 shares during the quarter. Quent Capital LLC’s holdings in Pegasystems were worth $32,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 150.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 278 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 85.6% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pegasystems during the fourth quarter valued at about $61,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pegasystems by 48.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 789 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Pegasystems by 75.0% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,493 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. 46.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Pegasystems Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEGA opened at $97.95 on Friday. Pegasystems Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.90 and a 1 year high of $113.67. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.54. The company has a market cap of $8.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.98 and a beta of 1.14.

Pegasystems Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.015 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.06%. Pegasystems’s payout ratio is 5.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PEGA shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Pegasystems from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Pegasystems from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Pegasystems from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JMP Securities restated 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 reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 price target (up previously from $85.00) on shares of Pegasystems in a report on Thursday, April 24th. 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 MarketBeat.com, Pegasystems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Alan Trefler sold 31,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 17,247,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,223,373,261.02. This trade represents a 0.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Rifat Kerim Akgonul sold 2,000 shares of Pegasystems 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 sale, the insider now owns 56,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,084,581.50. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 129,020 shares of company stock valued at $10,404,155. Insiders own 49.70% 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.