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

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) had its price objective cut by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $185.00 to $150.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the software maker’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target indicates a potential upside of 18.06% from the stock’s current price.

PCTY has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Citizens Jmp lowered their target price on shares of Paylocity from $270.00 to $245.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research raised Paylocity from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Paylocity in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Paylocity from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Paylocity in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.68.

Paylocity Stock Performance

Shares of Paylocity stock opened at $127.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.91 billion, a PE ratio of 31.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.54. Paylocity has a 52 week low of $123.71 and a 52 week high of $223.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $145.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.32.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The software maker reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. Paylocity had a net margin of 13.75% and a return on equity of 22.07%. The business had revenue of $408.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $399.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. Paylocity’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Paylocity will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Paylocity

In other Paylocity news, CFO Ryan Glenn sold 1,737 shares of the 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 transaction, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 19.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in Paylocity during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in Paylocity by 363.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 190 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paylocity during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Paylocity during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Paylocity by 88.0% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 282 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.76% of the company’s stock.

Paylocity News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat — Paylocity delivered $1.85 EPS vs. ~$1.57 consensus and total revenue of $416.1M (up ~10.4% YoY), showing better-than-expected operating performance and margin strength. Paylocity Announces Second-Quarter Fiscal Year 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Cash flow & buybacks — trailing 12‑month operating cash flow and free cash flow margins remain strong (28.3% and 23.6%), and the company repurchased $100M in Q2 (about 690k shares), totaling ~$600M repurchased since May 2024 — supports shareholder returns. Paylocity Announces Second-Quarter Fiscal Year 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Product/AI commentary — management emphasized accelerating revenue growth drivers and AI enhancements on the earnings call that could support longer-term product differentiation. Paylocity Holding Corp (PCTY) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials available — full earnings slide deck and call transcript were posted for investor review (useful for deeper due diligence). Paylocity Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Soft guidance — Paylocity set FY2026 revenue guidance around $1.6B (below ~$1.7B consensus) and Q3 revenue guidance of $457.5M–$462.5M (vs. ~$483.8M consensus), triggering investor concern and short‑term pressure on the shares. Paylocity shares fall as strong Q2 results overshadowed by guidance concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst stance & valuation notes — UBS issued a hold and some coverage questioned near-term upside; at least one valuation piece suggests the stock may be below an intrinsic estimate (mixed implications for timing). Paylocity Receives a Hold from UBS

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.