Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 47,247 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 51.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,342 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 47,247 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Paychex were worth $4,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 2,669.2% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $114.75 on Thursday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.45 and a 12-month high of $135.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $117.55 and a 200 day moving average of $102.54.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were given a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PAYX. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $132.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Paychex from $95.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $125.65.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, CFO Robert Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc is a provider of payroll, human resources, and workforce management solutions for businesses of varying sizes. Its offerings include payroll processing, tax administration, time and attendance tracking, employee benefits administration, retirement services, workers’ compensation and business insurance, recruiting, and compliance support.

The company also provides professional employer organization services, helping businesses manage employment administration and human resources through an integrated platform.