Rathbones Group PLC Decreases Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Rathbones Group PLC lessened its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 4.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 193,784 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,673 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC owned 0.05% of Paychex worth $17,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 957.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the period. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. One 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 company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $108.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Paychex Stock Up 0.7%

Paychex stock opened at $117.67 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $41.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.06 and a beta of 0.81. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $141.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $104.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $98.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during 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%.Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued 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 4.0%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

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.