Redwood Investment Management LLC Acquires New Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Redwood Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 8,531 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $839,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. EFG International AG bought a new stake in Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,494,000. Danske Bank A S lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $23,035,000 after acquiring an additional 25,184 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 33.3% in 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 during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the second quarter worth $7,296,000. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the first quarter valued at $1,174,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Paychex Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $126.48 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.45 and a 52-week high of $139.53. The company has a market capitalization of $44.99 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average is $113.19 and its 200 day moving average is $100.77.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%.The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.20.

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.