Miramar Capital LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Miramar Capital LLC lifted its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 77,339 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,608 shares during the quarter. Paychex accounts for approximately 2.2% of Miramar Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Miramar Capital LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $9,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ABC Arbitrage SA lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 61.4% during the third quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA now owns 28,208 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,576,000 after purchasing an additional 10,726 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,877,000. Summit Global Investments increased its stake in Paychex by 1,938.2% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 48,143 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,103,000 after buying an additional 45,781 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 240,564 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,494,000 after buying an additional 41,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,384,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $637,820,000 after buying an additional 249,550 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX stock opened at $94.25 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $33.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.37 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $86.89 and a fifty-two week high of $161.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $103.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $116.47.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.96%.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, December 29th. 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. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Paychex from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $110.00 price objective on Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $123.94.

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.