Ascent Group LLC Has $2.12 Million Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 22.3%, selling 3,934 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with 13,743 shares valued at approximately $2,120,000.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, which corresponds to a dividend yield of 3.1%, with an ex-dividend date set for July 21st.
• Following recent insider sales, CEO John B. Gibson and Chairman Martin Mucci decreased their stakes in the company by 13.14% and 17.91%, respectively.

Ascent Group LLC cut its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,743 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 3,934 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Paychex were worth $2,120,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,807,843 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,907,314,000 after purchasing an additional 286,818 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,782,173 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,663,474,000 after purchasing an additional 737,542 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,989,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $769,731,000 after purchasing an additional 181,628 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,135,296 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $637,993,000 after purchasing an additional 30,670 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 99.0% during the 1st quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,494,312 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $539,102,000 after purchasing an additional 1,738,372 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $138.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,852,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,271,485. The firm has a market cap of $49.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $128.92 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28. The company's 50 day moving average price is $143.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.62.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's payout ratio is presently 94.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total transaction of $14,157,849.42. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Barclays set a $155.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $149.70.

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.