Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Earns “In-Line” Rating from Evercore ISI

Evercore ISI restated their in-line rating on shares of Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) in a report published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $118.00 target price on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on PAYX. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. TD Cowen reissued a market perform rating and issued a $123.00 price target (down previously from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 22nd. Citigroup dropped their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 26th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $122.77.

Paychex Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $122.80 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $44.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.29, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $121.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $119.51. Paychex has a 52-week low of $104.09 and a 52-week high of $129.70.

Paychex announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 13th were issued a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 12th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 79.11%.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 82,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 11.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paychex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 102,768.9% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,537,548 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $524,359,000 after buying an additional 4,533,137 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in Paychex by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,504,389 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,204,115,000 after purchasing an additional 1,523,520 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 337.3% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,544,806 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $178,162,000 after buying an additional 1,191,539 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 229.8% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,630,944 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $188,655,000 after buying an additional 1,136,456 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $115,494,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Company Profile

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.