Danske Bank A S Takes $20.79 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 211,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,791,000. Danske Bank A S owned 0.06% of Paychex at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its position 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 in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 2,669.2% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $122.91 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.72 billion, a PE ratio of 25.14 and a beta of 0.81. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $141.19. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.20.

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.