Strategic Investment Advisors MI Purchases Shares of 13,076 Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Strategic Investment Advisors MI purchased a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 13,076 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,205,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 957.1% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2,669.2% in the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PAYX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.20.

Paychex Trading Down 4.7%

Shares of PAYX opened at $116.33 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $146.83. The company has a market capitalization of $41.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $104.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $98.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

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.