Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Purchases 280,034 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 48.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 856,235 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 280,034 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Paychex were worth $96,052,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,877,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Paychex by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,750,669,000 after acquiring an additional 4,583,157 shares in the last quarter. First Long Island Investors LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Long Island Investors LLC now owns 99,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,626,000 after acquiring an additional 19,185 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Paychex by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 978,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $123,983,000 after acquiring an additional 270,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LBP AM SA lifted its stake in Paychex by 125.2% in the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 40,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,545,000 after acquiring an additional 22,527 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Up 1.4%

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $100.63 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.17 and a beta of 0.84. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.45 and a twelve month high of $154.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $93.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This is a boost from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 104.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. UBS Group cut their target price on Paychex from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Stephens lowered their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $106.63.

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.