Bull Harbor Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Bull Harbor Capital LLC purchased a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 6,991 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $644,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG raised its position in shares of Paychex by 2,669.2% in the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $116.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $104.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $98.48. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $146.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79 and a beta of 0.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $108.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the sale, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

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.