Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Bought by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 948,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 60,500 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.26% of Paychex worth $87,339,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Paychex by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,395,583,000 after buying an additional 11,243,295 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Paychex by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after acquiring an additional 4,583,157 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in Paychex by 4,141.2% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,409,229 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $270,267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,352,423 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at $257,699,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $117,809,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup raised shares of Paychex from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $99.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday. UBS Group lowered their price target on Paychex from $100.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.40.

Paychex Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $115.20 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $100.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $98.29. The company has a market capitalization of $41.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.56 and a beta of 0.84. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.45 and a 12 month high of $148.11.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.