Bank of America Corp DE Has $398.32 Million Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Bank of America reduced its Paychex stake by 19.2% in the first quarter, selling 1.03 million shares and retaining 4.32 million shares valued at approximately $398.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.47% of Paychex.
• Paychex reported quarterly EPS of $1.32, slightly beating estimates, while revenue rose 12.5% year over year to $1.61 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.19, representing a 4.1% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $108.20. Recent insider activity included share sales by a director and the CFO.

Bank of America Corp DE trimmed its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 19.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,323,890 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,027,336 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 1.21% of Paychex worth $398,317,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Paychex by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,750,669,000 after acquiring an additional 4,583,157 shares in the last quarter. LBP AM SA increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 125.2% during the fourth quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 40,517 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,545,000 after acquiring an additional 22,527 shares in the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 79,708 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $8,942,000 after purchasing an additional 11,805 shares during the period. Comerica Bank raised its position in shares of Paychex by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,653,000 after purchasing an additional 11,497 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,035,000 after purchasing an additional 25,184 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were 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. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $107.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Paychex from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.20.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $116.84 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $104.42 and its 200 day moving average is $98.51. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.45 and a 12-month high of $146.83. The stock has a market cap of $41.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.89 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. Paychex's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio 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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