Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by Highlander Capital Management LLC

Highlander Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 33.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 400 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $49,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total transaction of $1,514,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,663,199.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,663,199.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 9,615 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total value of $1,207,644.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $676,104.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 152,438 shares of company stock valued at $18,185,292 in the last ninety days. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.79 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $127.28. The stock had a trading volume of 2,414,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,863,513. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $106.27 and a 52 week high of $129.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $45.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $122.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.03.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. The company 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 83.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays cut their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $122.46.

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.