Empowered Funds LLC Buys New Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 170,728 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,788,000.

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

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $127.04 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $139.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The business's fifty day moving average price is $113.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.19 billion, a PE ratio of 25.98 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were given a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex's payout ratio is 97.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $107.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $109.20.

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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