Welch Group LLC Grows Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Welch Group LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 19.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 484,448 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 77,646 shares during the quarter. Welch Group LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Paychex worth $44,627,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 957.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $99.90 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.43 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.14. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $148.76.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Citigroup upgraded Paychex from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $99.00 to $140.00 in a report on Monday, June 15th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Paychex to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.67.

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.