Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Purchased by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 33.9% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 37,073 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,379 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Paychex were worth $4,699,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 83.8% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 215 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 40.6% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 263 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $153.00 to $148.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $128.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $125.67.

Paychex Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $113.77 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $107.80 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $40.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.80 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50 day moving average of $112.60 and a 200 day moving average of $127.49.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. Paychex had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.38%. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Paychex

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.