HM Payson & Co. Buys 127 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

HM Payson & Co. boosted its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 3.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,167 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 55.8% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $127.28. 2,415,604 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,943,847. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.84 billion, a PE ratio of 27.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $106.27 and a one year high of $129.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $122.07 and its 200 day moving average is $122.10.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 32.03%. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $122.46.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total transaction of $2,454,755.95. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at $670,452.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total transaction of $2,454,755.95. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $670,452.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,287,448.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 152,438 shares of company stock worth $18,185,292. Company insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.