Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Research Coverage Started at Stephens

Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $132.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price 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. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.00.

Paychex Stock Performance

Paychex stock opened at $121.71 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $43.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.82. Paychex has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $138.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $116.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.02.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.34%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. XXEC Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,123,016,000. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 10,017.6% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 56,750,570 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,580,284,000 after acquiring an additional 56,189,662 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter valued at $2,728,970,000. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Paychex by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,395,583,000 after purchasing an additional 11,243,295 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth about $434,061,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

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.