Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Declares $1.08 Quarterly Dividend

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be paid a dividend of 1.08 per share by the business services provider on Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th.

Paychex has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 3 consecutive years. Paychex has a dividend payout ratio of 76.2% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings tumble. Equities analysts expect Paychex to earn $5.31 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 81.4%.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $111.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,374,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,595,620. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $112.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Paychex has a 52 week low of $107.80 and a 52 week high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.91 billion, a PE ratio of 25.21 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PAYX. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $114.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $125.67.

Paychex Company Profile

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.