QRG Capital Management Inc. Trims Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

QRG Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 35.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 30,066 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 16,434 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 957.1% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PAYX. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Argus raised shares of Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.80.

Paychex Trading Up 3.9%

PAYX stock traded up $4.12 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $109.52. 332,115 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,741,192. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $148.11. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $96.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.64. The company has a market capitalization of $39.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40 and a beta of 0.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.