Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Stock Has Average Price Target of $127.59 According to Brokerages

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $127.88.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 28th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Paychex from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $450.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, September 24th.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $112.12 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.81. Paychex has a 52-week low of $85.45 and a 52-week high of $127.98. The business’s fifty day moving average is $112.80 and its 200 day moving average is $103.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.63 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 52.78% and a net margin of 27.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.896-6.006 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 26th will be given a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 26th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 94.44%.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, Director Joseph Velli sold 7,839 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total transaction of $844,103.52. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 81,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,800,148. The trade was a 8.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 546.1% in the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 23,732 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,338,000 after buying an additional 20,059 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 18.2% in the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 12,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,273,000 after acquiring an additional 1,991 shares in the last quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 34.6% in the third quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,365 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $627,000 after acquiring an additional 1,637 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 9.7% in the third quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. now owns 88,307 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,770,000 after acquiring an additional 7,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 32.7% during the third quarter. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $791,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc provides payroll, human resources and employee-benefits solutions to small and medium-sized businesses. Its offerings include payroll processing, tax administration, time and attendance management, recruiting, onboarding, human resources administration, compliance support and employee benefits services.

The company also provides retirement-plan services, insurance solutions and professional employer organization services. Through its software and outsourced services, Paychex helps employers manage workforce administration, employee data and regulatory requirements.

Paychex was founded in 1971 by B.