Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Bought by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 13.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,344,056 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 278,507 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Paychex were worth $215,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after buying an additional 4,583,157 shares in the last quarter. LBP AM SA raised its position in Paychex by 125.2% during the fourth quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 40,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,545,000 after acquiring an additional 22,527 shares during the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its position in Paychex by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 79,708 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,942,000 after acquiring an additional 11,805 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,653,000 after purchasing an additional 11,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,035,000 after purchasing an additional 25,184 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $110.74 on Thursday. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $148.11. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.28. The company has a market capitalization of $39.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.65 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. Paychex’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.53.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Paychex

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.