Erste Asset Management GmbH Invests $6.05 Million in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 45,500 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,051,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 286.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in Paychex by 227.6% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. American National Bank grew its position in Paychex by 166.7% in the second quarter. American National Bank now owns 288 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 42.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $145.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.01, a P/E/G ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $141.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $130.83. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.72 and a 52-week high of $150.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total transaction of $3,674,284.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 64.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,471,480.70. This represents a 42.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,577,231 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

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.