AlphaCore Capital LLC Purchases 2,194 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Key Points

• AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 43.0%, holding 7,293 shares valued at approximately $1.13 million.
• In Q1, institutional investors owned 83.47% of Paychex's shares, with large firms like Vanguard and Charles Schwab increasing their holdings.
• Paychex announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, with a yield of 3.1% and a high payout ratio of 94.53%.

AlphaCore Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 43.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,293 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,194 shares during the quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC's holdings in Paychex were worth $1,125,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter worth $34,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter worth $34,000. Tsfg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 122.3% during the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the first quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total value of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX traded down $3.61 on Tuesday, hitting $134.99. 3,123,380 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,158,050. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $147.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.40. The firm has a market cap of $48.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $123.35 and a one year high of $161.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays set a $155.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $150.20.

About Paychex

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.