Sheets Smith Wealth Management Sells 7,392 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Sheets Smith Wealth Management reduced its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 32.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,279 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 7,392 shares during the quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Stance Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $98.24 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $152.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.64. The stock has a market cap of $35.20 billion, a PE ratio of 21.64 and a beta of 0.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This is a boost from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PAYX. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Argus raised shares of Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $108.19.

Paychex Company 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.