Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) PT Raised to $126.00

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) had its price target increased by TD Cowen from $121.00 to $126.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a sector perform rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $123.00.

Paychex Stock Up 0.7 %

PAYX opened at $135.09 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Paychex has a 12 month low of $106.27 and a 12 month high of $136.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $126.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $123.42.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 46.63%. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at $51,287,448.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total transaction of $11,901,732.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at $51,287,448.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total transaction of $1,514,445.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,745 shares in the company, valued at $6,663,199.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,163 shares of company stock valued at $17,537,817 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paychex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the second quarter worth about $10,038,000. Clear Rock Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Rock Advisors LLC now owns 23,139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,743,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares during the period. New Century Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 158.5% during the 2nd quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 5,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 3,137 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC bought a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth about $235,000. Finally, 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $397,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.