Procyon Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Procyon Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 55.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,470 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5,609 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 8.6% in the second quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 53,974 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,851,000 after purchasing an additional 4,254 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 6.0% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,384,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $637,820,000 after acquiring an additional 249,550 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc increased its position in shares of Paychex by 10.8% during the second quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 255,076 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,716,000 after acquiring an additional 24,820 shares during the period. Midwest Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at $5,202,000. Finally, Tectonic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 18.1% in the third quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 67,903 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,607,000 after purchasing an additional 10,386 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $111.18 on Friday. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.51. The stock has a market cap of $39.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.21 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $107.80 and a 12-month high of $161.24.

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

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be given a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Paychex from $128.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Argus cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced 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. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $125.67.

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.