Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,466 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 218 shares during the period. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $346,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Paychex by 152.6% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 805.9% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $144.77 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.48, a PEG ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.83. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.72 and a 12 month high of $150.71.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on PAYX shares. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $132.23.

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.