Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Position Increased by Exeter Financial LLC

Exeter Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,384 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 206 shares during the quarter. Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,737,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in Paychex by 27.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 988,417 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $132,636,000 after acquiring an additional 212,700 shares during the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD raised its position in shares of Paychex by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 1,567,667 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $210,282,000 after purchasing an additional 68,627 shares during the period. MBB Public Markets I LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,557,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Paychex by 169.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 4,799 shares during the period. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in Paychex by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 187,663 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,182,000 after buying an additional 4,157 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $140.53 on Tuesday. 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $142.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.67. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.72 and a 52-week high of $150.71. The firm has a market cap of $50.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.96, a PEG ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.23.

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.