Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Sold by Corebridge Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Corebridge Financial Inc. has reduced its holdings in Paychex, Inc. by 3.9%, selling 4,744 shares during the first quarter, now owning 117,567 shares valued at approximately $18.14 million.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 3.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for July 21st.
• The stock price of Paychex opened at $138.50, and the company has received multiple price target downgrades from analysts, with current consensus rating showing a "Reduce" outlook.

Corebridge Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,567 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,744 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $18,138,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Tsfg LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 122.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 381.2% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 409 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $149.70.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total transaction of $14,157,849.42. Following the sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. This represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares in the company, 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. 11.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Stock Up 0.1%

NASDAQ PAYX traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $138.72. 1,681,427 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,276,607. The company has a 50 day moving average of $142.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $128.92 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The firm has a market cap of $49.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.35, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.91.

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 for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%.The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is 94.53%.

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.