The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Makes New Investment in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 236,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $23,293,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.07% of Paychex at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. 44 Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Paychex by 2.7% in the second quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 3.5% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,645 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 1.4% in the third quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 7,270 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $922,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Paychex by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 798 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 2,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.20.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX opened at $126.48 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.45 and a twelve month high of $139.53. The firm has a market cap of $44.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.87 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $100.77.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.34%.

Paychex 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.