10,285 Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Bought by Ethic Inc.

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its Paychex stake by 11.9% in the third quarter, adding 10,285 shares and bringing its total to 96,799 shares, worth about $9.54 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $115.93. Recent ratings were mostly neutral, with targets ranging from $111 to $130.
• Paychex reported quarterly EPS of $1.34, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 5.9% year over year to $1.63 billion. It also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.19 per share, equivalent to a 4.1% yield.

Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 11.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 96,799 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,285 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $9,535,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,494,000. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,174,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $7,296,000. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter worth approximately $2,928,000. Finally, Hourglass Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $5,776,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on PAYX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Paychex from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $115.00 in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Paychex from $95.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Paychex has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $115.93.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $117.06 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $112.00 and a 200-day moving average of $103.78. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $127.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The company has a market cap of $41.67 billion, a PE ratio of 23.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.81.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.63 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.35% and a return on equity of 52.78%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.896-6.006 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 26th will be issued a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 26th. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other news, Director Joseph Velli sold 7,839 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total value of $844,103.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 81,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,800,148. This trade represents a 8.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc provides payroll, human resources and employee benefits solutions to businesses of varying sizes. Its services include payroll processing, tax administration, time and attendance tools, HR support, employee benefits, retirement services and business insurance.

The company also offers professional employer organization services, which let businesses outsource certain employment responsibilities, as well as technology for workforce management, recruiting and compliance. Paychex primarily serves employers in the United States and supports businesses with international workforce needs.

Founded in Rochester, New York, in 1971 by B.

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