Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Issues Earnings Results

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The business services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.37% and a net margin of 31.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.29 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex updated its FY 2024 guidance to 4.700-4.740 EPS.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.46 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $122.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,002,989 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,748,822. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.93 billion, a PE ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $121.99 and a 200 day moving average of $119.57. Paychex has a one year low of $104.09 and a one year high of $129.70.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 13th were paid a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 12th. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $123.00 target price (down previously from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $122.77.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, January 19th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to purchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total value of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in Paychex by 35.7% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 5,455 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $747,000 after purchasing an additional 1,436 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Paychex by 118.3% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 91,985 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,554,000 after purchasing an additional 49,851 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,019,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $237,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.