BMO Capital Markets Lowers Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) Price Target to $150.00

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) had its target price reduced by equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets from $185.00 to $150.00 in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the software maker’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price would indicate a potential upside of 27.28% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Paylocity from $175.00 to $164.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 12th. JMP Securities set a $245.00 price objective on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Paylocity in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $183.14.

Paylocity Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PCTY opened at $117.85 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $145.27 and a 200-day moving average of $156.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.73, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.54. Paylocity has a fifty-two week low of $113.70 and a fifty-two week high of $223.80.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The software maker reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $416.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $408.37 million. Paylocity had a return on equity of 23.03% and a net margin of 14.19%.Paylocity’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Paylocity will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paylocity news, CFO Ryan Glenn sold 1,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.65, for a total transaction of $249,520.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,229 shares in the company, valued at $11,093,945.85. This trade represents a 2.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 19.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Paylocity

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Paylocity in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of Paylocity by 363.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 190 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paylocity in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Paylocity in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Paylocity by 88.0% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 282 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. 94.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Paylocity

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat — Paylocity reported EPS of $1.85 vs. $1.57 expected and total revenue of $416.1M (up 10.4% YoY), showing solid recurring-revenue growth that supports long-term profitability. GlobeNewswire Q2 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cash flow and buybacks — trailing‑12‑month operating cash flow and free‑cash‑flow margins remain robust; company repurchased $100M (~690k shares) in Q2 and ~$600M (~3.7M shares) since May 2024, supporting EPS and shareholder returns. GlobeNewswire Q2 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Product and distribution drivers — management highlighted product expansion and growth through the broker channel as sources of upside to bookings and longer‑term revenue. MSN deep dive
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials available — full slide deck and call transcript provide more detail on client metrics and product road map for investors who want to dig into assumptions. MarketBeat earnings packet Seeking Alpha transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance disappointed — management’s FY26 and Q3 revenue guidance came in below consensus (Q3 guidance midpoint well under street estimates), which is the main near‑term catalyst behind the selloff as it suggests slower near‑term top‑line momentum. MarketBeat guidance summary
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price‑target cuts — multiple firms (Citigroup, Truist, Citizens JMP, Mizuho, BTIG, BMO) reduced targets today (ratings largely remain buy/outperform), trimming upside and adding near‑term selling pressure despite retained positive views. Benzinga coverage

About Paylocity

Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY) is a leading provider of cloud-based payroll and human capital management (HCM) software designed to streamline workforce administration for mid-sized organizations. The company’s integrated platform automates core functions such as payroll processing, benefits administration, time and labor tracking, and compliance management, enabling employers to manage employee data more efficiently and reduce administrative burdens.

In addition to payroll and HR capabilities, Paylocity offers talent management solutions including recruiting, onboarding, performance tracking, and learning management.