Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) PT Raised to $131.00 at TD Cowen

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) had its target price lifted by analysts at TD Cowen from $126.00 to $131.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the business services provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 7.36% from the stock’s current price.

PAYX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays increased their price objective on Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.71.

Paychex Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.61 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $141.40. 1,186,336 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,818,463. Paychex has a 12-month low of $106.27 and a 12-month high of $142.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $129.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $124.49. The firm has a market cap of $50.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.28, a PEG ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.00. 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 (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 46.63%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total value of $1,106,714.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 79,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,793,075.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total transaction of $1,106,714.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 79,232 shares in the company, valued at $9,793,075.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total value of $1,514,445.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,663,199.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 45,673 shares of company stock worth $5,636,085. 11.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 286.0% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 227.6% in the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.