Conning Inc. Has $1.02 Million Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Conning Inc. decreased its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 96.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,092 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 235,004 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,333,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 41,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,976,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 47.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 156,680 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,790,000 after buying an additional 50,169 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $91.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.34. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $32.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16 and a beta of 0.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 25.84% and a return on equity of 48.52%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current year.

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

Paychex Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be issued a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. This is an increase from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 104.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $99.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $106.38.

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.