XXEC Inc. Takes Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

XXEC Inc. bought a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 32,927 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,033,000. Paychex comprises about 0.6% of XXEC Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

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

Insider Activity

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Argus upgraded Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.80.

Paychex Price Performance

Paychex stock opened at $98.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $95.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.45 and a 12 month high of $148.76. The company has a market capitalization of $35.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Paychex Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. This is an increase from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.34%.

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.