MRA Advisory Group Has $238,000 Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

MRA Advisory Group decreased its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 295 shares during the period. MRA Advisory Group’s holdings in Paychex were worth $238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Paychex by 12.8% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 20,878,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,563,853,000 after purchasing an additional 2,373,894 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 155.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,478,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $304,338,000 after buying an additional 1,508,681 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $146,617,000. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Paychex by 57.2% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,179,930 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $267,695,000 after buying an additional 793,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd boosted its stake in Paychex by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,548,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $303,492,000 after buying an additional 623,000 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $139.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $106.27 and a 12-month high of $142.04. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 32.03%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $130.77.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 14,434 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.21, for a total transaction of $1,807,281.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $674,005.43. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Paychex news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 9,615 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total transaction of $1,207,644.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $676,104.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 14,434 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.21, for a total transaction of $1,807,281.14. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $674,005.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 45,673 shares of company stock valued at $5,636,085. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.