Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC Buys New Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $552,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after buying an additional 4,583,157 shares during the last quarter. LBP AM SA grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 125.2% in the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 40,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,545,000 after acquiring an additional 22,527 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S increased its position in shares of Paychex by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,035,000 after acquiring an additional 25,184 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its position in shares of Paychex by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,653,000 after acquiring an additional 11,497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in Paychex by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 208,150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $23,350,000 after acquiring an additional 51,982 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.20.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $122.02 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.45 and a 52-week high of $141.19. The stock has a market cap of $43.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.95 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $108.92 and its 200-day moving average is $99.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during 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%.Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.34%.

About Paychex

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.