R Squared Ltd Takes $1.15 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 9,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,148,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empirical Finance LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.7% in the second quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 11,267 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,639,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC increased its position in Paychex by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC now owns 2,464 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $358,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 40.6% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 263 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its position in Paychex by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 4,244 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $617,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 2,597 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Trading Up 3.6%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $94.48 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $104.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $117.36. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $86.89 and a 12-month high of $161.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $33.92 billion, a PE ratio of 21.42 and a beta of 0.90.

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

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be given a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, December 1st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $121.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Paychex to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $123.94.

Paychex 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.