Paycom Executives Receive Stock Awards as Shares Trade Near $125
Five members of Paycom Software's (NASDAQ: PAYC) senior leadership team received stock awards on February 18, 2026, according to SEC filings. The awards come after two executives sold shares worth approximately $450,000 in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The Trades
All five executives received their stock awards on the same day, February 18, 2026. CEO and Chairman Chad Richison, CFO Robert Foster, President and Chief Client Officer Terrell Shane Hadlock, COO Randall Peck, and Chief Sales Officer Jeffrey York each received awards as part of what appears to be a coordinated compensation event.
The awards follow a series of tax-related transactions earlier in February. On February 10, three executives—Richison, Foster, and Peck—had both award grants and tax payment transactions at $124.94 per share. Additional tax payment transactions occurred on February 5 at $131.59 per share for the same three executives.
Looking at the broader trading pattern, CFO Robert Foster sold 1,300 shares at $162.66 on December 10, 2025, generating proceeds of $211,458. COO Randall Peck followed with a sale of 1,442 shares at $165.50 on December 5, 2025, for total proceeds of $238,651. These sales occurred when PAYC was trading in the $160s, approximately 30% higher than current levels.
Who's Trading
The insider activity involves Paycom's entire C-suite leadership team. Chad Richison, who serves as both CEO and Chairman, has been with the company since its founding. As the largest individual shareholder, his transactions are closely watched by investors.
Robert Foster, the CFO, has been active with multiple transactions over the past three months, including both sales and tax-related dispositions. His December sale represented his only open-market transaction in the recent period.
Randall Peck, the Chief Operating Officer, has shown a similar pattern with a December sale followed by tax-related transactions in February. The coordination of awards across all five executives suggests this is part of Paycom's regular equity compensation schedule.
Notably absent from recent trading activity are purchases on the open market. All transactions have been either sales, awards, tax payments, or gifts. CEO Richison gifted 1,792 shares in November 2025, while Chief Information Officer Bradley Scott Smith gifted 1,200 shares in July 2025.
What to Watch
The synchronized February 18 awards across the leadership team appear to be part of Paycom's annual equity compensation cycle. The timing follows the company's fiscal year-end and likely relates to 2025 performance metrics.
The stock price context is significant. With shares trading around $125 at the time of recent transactions, PAYC has declined approximately 25% from the $160s level where executives sold in December. This price movement means the February awards are being granted at substantially lower valuations than the recent sales.
Tax payment transactions at $124.94 and $131.59 suggest ongoing vesting of previous equity awards. These mandatory withholdings for tax obligations are routine for executives receiving restricted stock units (RSUs) and should not be interpreted as discretionary selling.
The absence of open-market purchases despite the stock's decline from December levels may indicate executives are comfortable with their current ownership stakes or are restricted by trading windows. Paycom typically reports earnings in early February and early May, creating blackout periods around these dates.
For context, Paycom has faced headwinds as the HR software market becomes increasingly competitive. The company's Beti product, which allows employees to do their own payroll, has been both a differentiator and a source of implementation challenges for some clients.
Investors should monitor whether executives choose to sell any portion of their newly awarded shares once they vest, particularly if the stock recovers toward the $160 levels seen in late 2025. Additional awards may follow as part of the company's regular compensation practices, typically tied to performance milestones and retention objectives.
The clustering of executive awards on a single day is standard practice for many public companies, ensuring equity compensation is distributed fairly and transparently across the leadership team.
*Source: SEC Form 4 filings*