MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 67,057 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,271 shares during the quarter. Paychex accounts for approximately 1.0% of MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $7,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI grew its position in Paychex by 1.2% during the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 7,362 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Paychex by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,543 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 9,074 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 3.3% in the first quarter. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $129.38 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.57 billion, a PE ratio of 27.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $106.27 and a 1 year high of $133.12.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 83.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Finally, 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.62.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,287,448.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total transaction of $11,901,732.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,287,448.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total transaction of $1,106,714.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 79,232 shares in the company, valued at $9,793,075.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,163 shares of company stock valued at $17,537,817 over the last three months. 11.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), 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.