Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $123.00.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Barclays decreased their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. 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 Wednesday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total value of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now 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 SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 11.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Paychex

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $202,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 22,202 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,726,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 10,055 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 5,633 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,696 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,436,000 after acquiring an additional 1,377 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $117.79 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $122.10 and a 200 day moving average of $120.14. Paychex has a 12 month low of $104.09 and a 12 month high of $129.70. The firm has a market cap of $42.40 billion, a PE ratio of 25.66, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Paychex will post 4.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, January 19th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.