Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Holdings in Paycom Software, Inc. $PAYC

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its position in Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) by 65.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,499 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 4,751 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Paycom Software were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PAYC. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in Paycom Software by 10,106.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 486,957 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $101,355,000 after buying an additional 482,186 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Paycom Software by 228.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 532,124 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $110,756,000 after buying an additional 370,219 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in Paycom Software in the third quarter valued at approximately $58,452,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Paycom Software in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,414,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 3.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,802,788 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,207,792,000 after acquiring an additional 179,218 shares during the period. 87.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paycom Software Price Performance

Paycom Software stock opened at $120.68 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.66. Paycom Software, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.90 and a 12 month high of $267.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a PE ratio of 14.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.79.

Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The software maker reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $544.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $542.79 million. Paycom Software had a net margin of 22.10% and a return on equity of 24.25%. Paycom Software’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Paycom Software’s payout ratio is presently 18.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PAYC. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Paycom Software from $175.00 to $137.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $190.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $180.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Paycom Software from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Paycom Software from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $170.71.

About Paycom Software

Paycom Software, Inc (NYSE: PAYC) is a cloud-based human capital management (HCM) software provider that delivers an end-to-end solution for human resources, payroll, talent acquisition, time and labor management, and talent management. Its single-database platform enables organizations to process payroll, track time, administer benefits, and manage recruiting and employee development through a unified system. Paycom’s software is designed to streamline administrative tasks, improve data accuracy, and provide real-time reporting and analytics to support strategic HR decisions.

The company’s core offerings include payroll processing with built-in tax compliance, employee self-service functionality, automated time tracking, and customizable talent acquisition tools that allow employers to create and post job requisitions, screen candidates, and conduct onboarding electronically.