abrdn plc Increases Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

abrdn plc grew its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 128,827 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,221 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in Paychex were worth $17,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Paychex by 286.0% in the 2nd 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 during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 227.6% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $139.33 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.71, a PEG ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $106.27 and a 12-month high of $144.17. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $136.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.58%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,471,480.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total transaction of $3,674,284.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,018,020.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 68,608 shares of company stock valued at $9,384,512. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $130.77.

About Paychex

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.