Meritage Portfolio Management acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 20,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,339,000.
Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 80.9% in the 2nd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 275 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Cambridge Trust Co. increased its position in Paychex by 254.4% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 319 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in Paychex by 110.1% in the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Avalon Trust Co bought a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. 72.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Insider Activity
In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 45,810 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.96, for a total value of $5,724,417.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 19,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,474,208. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Paychex news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 41,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.79, for a total value of $4,785,484.91. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 19,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,292,642. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 45,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.96, for a total value of $5,724,417.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 19,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,474,208. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages have commented on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Paychex from $114.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Paychex from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, September 28th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Paychex from $115.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Friday, June 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $121.38.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Paychex
Paychex Price Performance
Paychex stock opened at $118.27 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $42.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s fifty day moving average is $119.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.12. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.09 and a 52 week high of $129.70.
Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 27th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.51% and a net margin of 31.40%. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Paychex Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 13th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.73%.
Paychex Company Profile
(Free Report)
Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.
See Also
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