Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 16,883 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 4.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 406,885 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,883 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Paychex worth $37,482,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Paychex by 59.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,395,583,000 after buying an additional 11,243,295 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Paychex by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after buying an additional 4,583,157 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Paychex by 4,141.2% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,409,229 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $270,267,000 after acquiring an additional 2,352,423 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth approximately $257,699,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $117,809,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $114.39 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.39 and a beta of 0.84. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.45 and a 52-week high of $148.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $100.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.39.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group cut their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.80.

Paychex 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.