Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased 332,180 shares of Paychex, Inc. for approximately $51.25 million, indicating a new position in the company during the 1st quarter.
• Paychex declared a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.2% and a payout ratio of 94.53%.
• Wall Street analysts have set a consensus target price of $149.70 for Paychex, with most rating the stock as "Hold" or "Neutral."

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 332,180 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $51,249,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Paychex as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 118.5% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 136,876 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $21,117,000 after buying an additional 74,245 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 32.6% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 119,291 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $18,404,000 after buying an additional 29,320 shares in the last quarter. MWA Asset Management increased its position in Paychex by 6.5% during the first quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 4,269 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Paychex by 15.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,419 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 7.1% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,607 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded down $1.39 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $133.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,281,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,133,851. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $141.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $146.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $129.20 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. Paychex's payout ratio is currently 94.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $149.70.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Paychex Company 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.