Tag - PEGA

Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA), Great Southern Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:GSBC) and Pharmaxis Depository Receipt (Nasdaq:PXSL) are among the new 52-week highs in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: AirTran Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:AAI), MannKind Corp. (Nasdaq:MNKD), Caribou Coffee Co Inc. (Nasdaq:CBOU), ArcSight Inc. (Nasdaq:ARST), SIGA Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq:SIGA) and Cornerstone Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:CRTX).

Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA), NCI Building Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:NCS) and BWAY Holding Co. (Nasdaq:BWY) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Astronics Corp. (Nasdaq:ATRO), WellCare Health Plans Inc. (Nasdaq:WCG), BE Aerospace Inc. (Nasdaq:BEAV), Altra Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:AIMC), Geron Corp. (Nasdaq:GERN) and National Interstate Corp. (Nasdaq:NATL).

Geron Corp. (Nasdaq:GERN), Century Aluminum Co. (Nasdaq:CENX) and Alkermes Inc. (Nasdaq:ALKS) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc (Nasdaq:EGLE), Canadian Solar Inc. (Nasdaq:CSIQ), Harmonic Inc. (Nasdaq:HLIT), PDL BioPharma Inc. (Nasdaq:PDLI), Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA) and TBS International Ltd. (Nasdaq:TBSI).

Sturm Ruger & Co Inc. (Nasdaq:RGR), Neutral Tandem Inc. (Nasdaq:TNDM) and AsiaInfo Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:ASIA) are among the new 52-week highs in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Ocwen Financial Corp. (Nasdaq:OCN), Village Super Market Inc. (Nasdaq:VLGEA) and Computer Programs And Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:CPSI) are among the new 52-week highs in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA) and Inter Atlantic Financial Inc. (Nasdaq:IAN) are the new 52-week high's on Tuesday's session.

Argan Inc (Nasdaq:AGX), Diamond Foods Inc (Nasdaq:DMND) and Parlux Fragrances Inc (Nasdaq:PARL) are among the new 52-week highs in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

ArcSight Inc (Nasdaq:ARST), Peerless Manufacturing Co (Nasdaq:PMFG) and Republic Banc KY (Nasdaq:RBCAA) are among the new 52-week highs in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Argan Inc (Nasdaq:AGX), First Financial Corp (Nasdaq:THFF), Stepan Co (Nasdaq:SCL), Stoneridge Inc (Nasdaq:SRI), Forrester Research Inc (Nasdaq:FORR) and Pegasystems Inc (Nasdaq:PEGA).

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

Sometimes it’s the little things that seemingly stir investors into action.

Take Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA), a maker of business process management (BPM) software, the enterprise-wide programs needed on this corporate planet to automate and streamline workflow while minimizing risks such as fraud. Pegasystems client roster is liberally sprinkled with Fortune 500 names, primarily in financial services, health care and insurance. Others are found in government, transaction outsourcing, communications and manufacturing.

A June 19 announcement from the Cambridge, Mass., company confirmed payment of a regular $0.03 dividend. Nothing new here; Pegasystems has been distributing that quarterly dividend the past few years.

Shares closed 6% higher that day, but the fireworks in Pegasystems share price have continued — right through Wednesday, when the stock climbed to a 52-week high of $14.07. Pegasystems had traded as low as $8.73 on Jan. 22. Shares closed Thursday at $13.75.

Whether that dividend commitment was behind the climb, few analysts are currently tracking Pegasystems, which has been around for a quarter century. On the same day of the announcement, Stanford Group’s Kevin Buttigieg initiated coverage with a “hold” rating.

“They are laser-focused on BPM,” Gregg Speicher, senior analyst and founder of Moss Creek Capital in McKinney, Texas, said in an interview. He began issuing reports to clients about Pegasystems last summer, and has the stock rated at a “buy” . . .

Exactech Inc (Nasdaq:EXAC), Vivus Inc (Nasdaq:VVUS) and Finish Line Inc (Nasdaq:FINL) are among the new 52-week highs in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Ezcorp Inc (Nasdaq:EZPW), Diamond Foods Inc (Nasdaq:DMND), Eresearchtechnology Inc (Nasdaq:ERES), Cyberonics Inc (Nasdaq:CYBX), Allos Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:ALTH) and Pegasystems Inc (Nasdaq:PEGA).

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

Omega Flex Inc (Nasdaq:OFLX), Pegasystems Inc (Nasdaq:PEGA) and Kensey Nash Corp (Nasdaq:KNSY) are among the new 52-week highs in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

Small-cap stocks closed out the week with a meager advance Friday, bucking the red ink seen in the Dow and S&P 500, which is a supportive sign for stocks in general as small caps tend to lead the way for equities — especially in recent years on the way up. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) rose 0.50, or 0.07%, to 720.05. For the week, small-cap shares were down 0.78%, which seems pretty tame in the face of renewed fretting about the credit crunch crisis and the highest crude oil prices in the history of the planet.

Crude oil futures shot above $126 dollars a barrel Friday, and have now soared about 11% since the beginning of May amid supply jitters out of Africa, geopolitical tension in the Middle East and tightening stocks of distillates. Not to mention a feeding frenzy from the bulls and a panic scramble by the shorts. With national pump prices already north of $3.50 a gallon, this week’s surge in crude oil prices will be a bitter pill for many Americans, already squeezed by rising food costs and sinking home equity. The ballyhooed economic stimulus package may lose some impact as the funds simply go to pay off consumer debt and fill the gas tank, not to “fuel” economic growth. Some airline carriers have announced fuel surcharges in recent days, and Northwest Airlines (NYSE:NWA) and Air Canada joined that chorus today.

The market came into Friday’s session on the defensive amid renewed concern about the credit crisis after American International Group (NYSE:AIG) reported larger-than-expected quarterly losses. AIG tumbled about 8% for the day, and was . . .

After opening sharply lower, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM), along with other major indices, remains besieged midday Friday after the credit crisis continued to ravage Wall Street.

At 1:45 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 was down 1.91, or 0.27%, at 717.64, while the Dow sunk 136.54, or 1.06%, to 12,730.24

Credit concerns were reignited after insurance juggernaut AIG (NYSE:AIG) reported a record loss after Thursday’s close, signaling that outside of Wall Street credit conditions have tightened further and the credit tempest isn’t showing signs of letting up.

“[AIG’s earnings] underscore that the credit crunch is ongoing,” said Andy Busch, foreign exchange strategist for BMO Capital Markets, in an interview. “I think we had gone through a period in which the earnings didn’t seem so bad and [now] we are getting earnings that are much larger as far as write downs go. People get nervous … when you have an earnings shock to any company.”

Compounding concerns, oil continued its skyward climb, hitting $126 a barrel midmorning on concerns that Venezuela could cut oil exports. Since then, oil has pulled back slightly to roughly $125 a barrel midday. Over the course of the . . .

Sun Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:SNBC), Aceto Corp. (Nasdaq:ACET) and Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq:PEGA) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $750 million.

Presstek Inc. (Nasdaq:PRST), TierOne Corp. (Nasdaq:TONE) and First Community Bank Corp. of America (Nasdaq:FCFL) are also among the biggest percentage gainers.

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

Follow the money trail and usually you’ll find the answer to your investment questions. Last week the broad sectors of the market saw negative money flows led by the basic materials and utilities sectors, according to a market intelligence report out today by Susquehanna Financial.

According to the investment bank, the basic materials sector’s sell off was driven by money outflows from the iron/steel and mining subgroups. Within the utilities sector, electric and gas were the weakest subgroups.

Mortgage insurers were also very active last week, due to overwhelming purchases of puts across the industry group, according to the bank.

On a stock specific level, Susquehanna saw that BioLase Technology (Nasdaq: BLTI) had the greatest negative money flow last week. The other top five negative money flows were seen in Interstate Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: IHR), Rentrak Corp. (Nasdaq: RENT), Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq: PEGA) and Lenox Group (NYSE: LNX).

On the flipside, Harte-Hanks (NYSE: HHS) saw the greatest positive money flow last week, according to Susquehanna. Other top five positive money flows the bank observed were in Jos. A. Bank Clothiers (Nasdaq: JOS), BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: BCR), Hilltop Holdings (NYSE: HTH) and I.D. Systems (Nasdaq: IDSY).

As investors seek safety from an unrelenting weakening market, gold has continued to experience strong money inflows over the past weeks, according to Susquehanna.  With gold prices continually flirting with the $900 level, the bank has seen call buying across both gold equities and sector-based products.

The overall trend continues to remain volatile across most sectors, including consumer, energy and steel. According to Susquehanna, implied volatility levels have been generally heightened, as the market continues to tumble lower. The bank noted that the majority of the volatility selling it saw occurred close to the market open, with the order flow trailing off as the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) eased off its highs.

Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq: PEGA)
Cambridge, Mass.
http://www.pegasystems.com/

52-week low / high: $8.07 / $13.10
Shares Outstanding: 36.13 million
Market Capitalization: $384.39 million

Managers wanting to grease their business machine are discovering Pegasystems Inc.’s (Nasdaq: PEGA) software. The Cambridge, Mass.-based firm makes software that drives “revenue growth, productivity, and agility for the world's most sophisticated organizations.” With the company’s recent revenue and earnings increase, small-cap investors may want Pegasystems’ stock to drive their own revenue growth.

The firm’s stock price has been relatively stable over the last 52 weeks. After touching a year low of $8.07 on March 13, the stock hit a 52-week high of $13.10 on Nov. 6 when Pegasystems swung to a third-quarter profit, from a loss during the year-ago quarter. Since then, shares have hovered in the $10 to $12 range.

Although some of Pegasystems’ main customers are in the financial services and health-care markets, the company has been able to weather the subprime crisis. The firm has managed this feat by going after the international market and pursuing diverse projects with their customers, Gregg Speicher, a senior equity analyst with Moss Creek Capital, said in an interview with Business Financial Publishing.

“I won’t say that they haven’t maybe lost a deal here and there, but again they are deep in these banks so they’ll have 10 different projects,” Speicher said.

Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq: PEGA) shares are soaring after the business services provider reported third-quarter revenue of $42 million, above analyst estimates of $29.62 million and up 25% from $33.5 million a year earlier.

“We are very pleased with our results for the third quarter, which reflect strong, balanced growth and progress on our strategic initiatives,” CEO Alan Trefler, Pegasystems said in a statement. “During the quarter, we closed significant new business with existing customers, continuing to drive growth with our target account strategy. As examples, two large U.K. government agencies, each with over 10,000 users, and one of the leading global players in financial services significantly expanded their use of Pegasystems products to meet additional business needs across operations and departments.”

The firm’s quarterly net income rose 975% to $3.5 million, or $0.09 per share, compared with a loss of $0.4 million, or $0.01 per share, during the same period of 2006.

“Our current financial statements show strong, steady improvement, with license revenue, services revenue, and gross profit all exhibiting solid year-over-year and quarter-to-quarter growth,” CFO Craig Dynes said in a statement. “We’re pleased with these financial results in light of the concern and uncertainty that the subprime mortgage problems have caused in the financial services sector.”

Today, PEGA shares closed at $12.96. Over the last 52 weeks, shares have ranged from $8.07 to $13.10.

DivX, Inc. (Nasdaq: DIVX), Chesapeake Corp. (NYSE: CSK) and Valassis Communications, Inc. (NYSE: VCI) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million.

Here are today's biggest percentage gainers:

These are the biggest percentage gainers among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

Shares of Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq: PEGA) rose $0.09, or 0.94%, to $9.90 in after-hours trading today on the news that Nasdaq has given the company an extension on the filing of its 2006 annual report. As long as the Cambridge, Mass.-based software company files the 10-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission by May 10, then it will not be delisted from the Nasdaq exchange. Pegasystems said it plans to file the report with the SEC “next week,” and to regain compliance with the filing requirement for continued listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market at that time.

Coca-Cola Bottling Co.’s (Nasdaq: COKE) stock was up by $0.58, or 1%, to $57.84 in after-hours trading today after the Charlotte, N.C.-based company announced a surge in first-quarter profits. Coca-Cola Bottling said it earned $4.7 million, or $0.51, on revenue of $337.6 million in the 2007 first quarter compared with net income of $800,000, or $0.09, on revenue of $ 333 million in the same period last year.

Shares of Pegasystems Inc. (Nasdaq: PEGA) inched upwards in after-hours trading today on the news that Nasdaq has given the company another extension on the filing of its 2006 annual report.

As long as the company files the 10-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission by May 10 it will not be delisted from Nasdaq.

Pegasystems said it plans to file the report with the SEC “next week,” and regain compliance with the filing requirement for continued listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market at that time.

In March, the Cambridge, Mass.-based business process software maker said it received notice from Nasdaq officials that it had missed the March 20, 2007, deadline for filing its form 10-K for 2006. Nasdaq then extended the deadline until April 25.