Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Holdings Lifted by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 17.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 405,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 59,630 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.11% of Paychex worth $49,745,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Paychex by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other Paychex news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total transaction of $2,454,755.95. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at $670,452.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 437,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,287,448.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total value of $2,454,755.95. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $670,452.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 133,869 shares of company stock valued at $15,870,933. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on PAYX. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 27th. 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 Thursday, June 27th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $122.46.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX stock traded down $1.22 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $123.02. 469,381 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,850,837. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $121.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.57. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $106.27 and a fifty-two week high of $129.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $44.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 32.03%. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 8th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 83.94%.

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.