Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Price Target Lowered to $123.00 at Morgan Stanley

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) had its price target cut by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $133.00 to $123.00 in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 9.55% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $110.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday. UBS Group decreased their target price on Paychex from $140.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday. Wolfe Research cut their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $121.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $129.93.

Paychex Trading Down 1.7%

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $112.28 on Monday. Paychex has a one year low of $108.00 and a one year high of $161.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $116.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.46 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.85% and a return on equity of 45.17%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. Research analysts expect that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,765,468 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,787,151,000 after purchasing an additional 5,549,511 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter worth about $302,244,000. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its position in Paychex by 99.0% in the first quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,494,312 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $539,102,000 after acquiring an additional 1,738,372 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the third quarter valued at about $117,809,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Paychex by 179.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,078,328 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $156,854,000 after acquiring an additional 692,533 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.