Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Acquired by Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 4.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,623 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 55.8% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $122.46.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $670,452.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total value of $1,514,445.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,663,199.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 value of $2,454,755.95. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $670,452.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 133,869 shares of company stock worth $15,870,933. Company insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Trading Down 1.3 %

Paychex stock traded down $1.56 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $122.68. 1,822,219 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,860,640. The firm has a market cap of $44.18 billion, a PE ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $121.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.60. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $106.27 and a 12-month high of $129.70.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Paychex Profile

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.