Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Stock: Optimist Retirement Group LLC Raises Stake

Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 546.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 23,732 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,059 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Paychex by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $149,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC grew its position in Paychex by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 5,464 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $503,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. United Community Bank increased its stake in Paychex by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 3,635 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 2,678 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 45.5% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 400 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $118.71 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $42.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.69. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $127.98.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.63 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.35% and a return on equity of 52.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.896-6.006 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 26th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 94.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph Velli sold 7,839 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total transaction of $844,103.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 81,725 shares in the company, valued at $8,800,148. This represents a 8.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $113.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Paychex from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $112.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $117.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, September 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $127.88.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc provides payroll, human resources and employee-benefits solutions to small and medium-sized businesses. Its offerings include payroll processing, tax administration, time and attendance management, recruiting, onboarding, human resources administration, compliance support and employee benefits services.

The company also provides retirement-plan services, insurance solutions and professional employer organization services. Through its software and outsourced services, Paychex helps employers manage workforce administration, employee data and regulatory requirements.

Paychex was founded in 1971 by B.