Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $99.68 and last traded at $101.1880, with a volume of 188826 shares. The stock had previously closed at $102.47.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Paychex from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Wolfe Research cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Paychex to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $123.94.

Paychex Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.71. The firm has a market cap of $35.21 billion, a PE ratio of 22.30 and a beta of 0.90.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.38%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.96%.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Paychex

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,333,000. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Paychex by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,890 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 147,679 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $21,481,000 after buying an additional 5,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

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.