Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX – Free Report) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 810,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $79,682,000.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,395,583,000 after acquiring an additional 11,243,295 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after purchasing an additional 4,583,157 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 4,141.2% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,409,229 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $270,267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,352,423 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth approximately $257,699,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 2nd quarter valued at $193,555,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
PAYX has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup upped their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.20.
Insider Activity
In related 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 transaction of $383,862.75. Following 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Paychex Stock Performance
Shares of PAYX stock opened at $119.93 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $109.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.56. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $141.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $42.66 billion, a PE ratio of 24.53 and a beta of 0.81.
Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.
Paychex Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.34%.
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.
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