Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Buys 5,679 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 52.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,571 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,679 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,223,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Paychex by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 76,916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,321,000 after buying an additional 7,334 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 52.1% in the third quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 8,505 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,914 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Paychex by 23.6% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 613 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 1.1% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 64,483 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,653,000 after buying an additional 711 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.3% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 359,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,288,000 after acquiring an additional 4,606 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. The trade was a 42.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total value of $3,674,284.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,018,020.45. This trade represents a 64.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,174 shares of company stock worth $7,577,231 over the last three months. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $144.46 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.72 and a fifty-two week high of $150.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $140.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $130.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $51.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 0.99.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. Paychex’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.62.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), 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.