Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $16.61 Million Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 54.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 148,041 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,184 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Paychex were worth $16,607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. 44 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.5% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,686 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,509,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,834 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Moment Partners LLC now owns 6,911 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $876,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $94.92 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.01 billion, a PE ratio of 20.91 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $91.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $101.66. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.49 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. This is a boost from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 104.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Argus upgraded Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $106.38.

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.