Allworth Financial LP Decreases Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Allworth Financial LP cut its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 9,395 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,680 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 8.3% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 61,049 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,238,000 after acquiring an additional 4,703 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Paychex by 85.1% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,259,393 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $154,263,000 after buying an additional 579,136 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its position in Paychex by 4.9% during the first quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 10,250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,259,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Paychex by 5.8% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 110,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,522,000 after buying an additional 6,033 shares during the period. Finally, BDF Gestion bought a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,796,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Paychex stock opened at $140.27 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $50.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.91, a PEG ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $135.28 and its 200 day moving average is $126.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $106.27 and a 52-week high of $144.17.

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 company 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%. Paychex’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 83.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PAYX. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $130.77.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,480.70. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Paychex news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 68,608 shares of company stock valued at $9,384,512 over the last 90 days. 11.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex 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.