Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Lowers Stock Position in Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc cut its position in shares of Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) by 34.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,284 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 15,634 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Paycom Software were worth $6,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in Paycom Software by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 575 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Paycom Software by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,939 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $602,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 5,502 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 4,495 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 10,702 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $2,192,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 87.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paycom Software Price Performance

Shares of PAYC stock opened at $260.25 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $219.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $216.28. Paycom Software, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.50 and a 12 month high of $261.64. The company has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.80.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The software maker reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by $0.18. Paycom Software had a net margin of 26.66% and a return on equity of 33.53%. The company had revenue of $530.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $522.92 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. Paycom Software’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Paycom Software, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Paycom Software Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. Paycom Software’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Paycom Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $234.00 to $221.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $221.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paycom Software has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $226.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Chad R. Richison sold 120,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.52, for a total value of $29,222,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,307,249 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $805,381,276.48. The trade was a 3.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradley Scott Smith sold 3,000 shares of Paycom Software stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.01, for a total transaction of $603,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 28,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,775,620.33. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 127,100 shares of company stock valued at $30,698,424 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 10.90% of the company’s stock.

Paycom Software Profile

Paycom Software, Inc provides cloud-based human capital management (HCM) solution delivered as software-as-a-service for small to mid-sized companies in the United States. It offers functionality and data analytics that businesses need to manage the employment life cycle from recruitment to retirement.