Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Takes Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors purchased 35,351 Paychex shares in the first quarter, valued at approximately $3.26 million. Hedge funds and other institutional investors collectively own 83.47% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious outlook, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $107.53, despite several recent target-price increases.
• Paychex reported quarterly EPS of $1.32 and revenue of $1.61 billion, exceeding expectations, while revenue grew 12.5% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.19 per share, representing a 4.0% annualized yield.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 35,351 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,257,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG increased its position in shares of Paychex by 2,669.2% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.53.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Paychex Stock Up 2.9%

PAYX stock opened at $118.87 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $103.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.41. The company has a market capitalization of $42.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.31 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.45 and a 12 month high of $148.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The firm's revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.34%.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas "Tom" Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company's core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers' compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.

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