Optimum Investment Advisors Sells 700 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Optimum Investment Advisors trimmed its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 48.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 750 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors’ holdings in Paychex were worth $101,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PAYX. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 286.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 227.6% in 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 during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the second quarter worth $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

PAYX stock opened at $141.53 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $106.27 and a one year high of $144.17. The firm has a market cap of $50.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.18, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $133.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $126.15.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. Paychex’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid 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 yield of 2.77%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup upped their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.77.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the business’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 sale, the vice president now owns 79,232 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,793,075.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 9,615 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total transaction of $1,207,644.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $676,104.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 79,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,793,075.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 87,177 shares of company stock valued at $11,698,870 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

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.