What is Zacks Research’s Estimate for Paylocity Q1 Earnings?

Paylocity Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:PCTY) – Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q1 2027 earnings per share estimates for Paylocity in a report issued on Tuesday, August 25th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the software maker will post earnings per share of $1.34 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.27. Zacks Research has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Paylocity’s current full-year earnings is $6.86 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Paylocity’s Q2 2027 earnings at $1.33 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $2.27 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $1.39 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.33 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $1.55 EPS, Q2 2028 earnings at $1.57 EPS, Q3 2028 earnings at $2.37 EPS, Q4 2028 earnings at $1.70 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $7.18 EPS.

Several other analysts have also commented on PCTY. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Paylocity from $160.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citizens Jmp decreased their price target on shares of Paylocity from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group upped their price target on Paylocity from $122.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Paylocity from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Paylocity in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $160.53.

Paylocity Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PCTY opened at $152.04 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $129.04 and a 200-day moving average of $115.64. The firm has a market cap of $8.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.72 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Paylocity has a twelve month low of $92.99 and a twelve month high of $181.97.

Paylocity (NASDAQ:PCTY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.22. Paylocity had a net margin of 15.23% and a return on equity of 27.02%. The firm had revenue of $444.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $431.46 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.56 earnings per share. Paylocity’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paylocity news, SVP Joshua Scutt sold 4,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.82, for a total transaction of $708,648.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 75,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,345,718.78. This trade represents a 5.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Steven I. Sarowitz sold 11,136 shares of Paylocity stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.81, for a total value of $1,679,420.16. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,535,052 shares in the company, valued at approximately $683,931,192.12. This trade represents a 0.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,741 shares of company stock worth $4,621,962. 19.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Paylocity

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in Paylocity by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 10,472 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Paylocity by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,419 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $521,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Paylocity by 35.0% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 428 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. State of Wyoming grew its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 16.0% during the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 861 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paylocity by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,382 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. 94.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paylocity News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Paylocity this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2027 EPS forecast to $6.33 from $5.98 and its FY2028 forecast to $7.18 from $6.67. The firm also increased estimates for Q1 and Q2 2027 and Q3 2028, indicating improved expectations for Paylocity’s earnings growth. Zacks additionally initiated a FY2029 EPS estimate of $8.28. Paylocity analyst coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Paylocity’s partnership with HireQuotient received customer validation: Alliance Building Services reportedly reduced manual recruiting work by 70% and cut time-to-hire by more than half using HireQuotient’s AI-native recruiting platform. The example supports the value of Paylocity’s partner ecosystem and integrated human-capital software offering. HireQuotient Alliance Building Services announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: The estimate changes were not uniformly positive. Zacks trimmed its Q2 2028 EPS forecast slightly to $1.57 from $1.58 and reduced Q4 2027 to $1.39 from $1.43, while maintaining a “Hold” rating. The current-year consensus remains $6.86 per share.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Steven I. Sarowitz sold 441 shares for approximately $68,355 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale represented only 0.01% of his ownership, leaving him with nearly 4.47 million shares, so it is unlikely to materially affect investor sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: The modest downward revisions for select future quarters introduce some uncertainty around the pace and timing of earnings growth, particularly given Paylocity’s elevated valuation relative to its historical trading range.

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.