18,157 Shares in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Purchased by Element Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Element Capital Management LLC invested approximately $2.80 million in Paychex, acquiring 18,157 shares, making it the 14th largest position in their portfolio.
• Paychex has recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing a dividend yield of 3.1% and a total annual payout of $4.32.
• Several analysts have set new price targets for Paychex, with the consensus target price currently at $150.70, indicating mixed outlooks with ratings ranging from sell to hold.

Element Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 18,157 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,801,000. Paychex makes up about 0.7% of Element Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Paychex by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 30,374 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,259,000 after buying an additional 2,980 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 23.8% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,681 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,217,000 after buying an additional 1,667 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 38,319 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,373,000 after buying an additional 1,406 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $227,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on PAYX shares. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Citigroup set a $158.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays set a $155.00 price target on Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.70.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other Paychex news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total value of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Paychex Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX traded down $0.68 during trading on Monday, reaching $137.57. 1,953,622 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,091,113. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $145.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $148.11. The firm has a market cap of $49.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.64 and a 12-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.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid 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 currently 94.53%.

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.