EP Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. by 10.3% during the first quarter, owning 38,265 shares valued at approximately $5.9 million.
• Insider transactions included significant sales by Chairman Martin Mucci, who sold 97,526 shares for over $14 million, reducing his stake by almost 18%.
• Paychex declared a quarterly dividend of $1.08, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 3.2% with a high payout ratio of 94.53%.

EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 10.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,265 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,566 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Paychex were worth $5,904,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Tsfg LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 122.3% during the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first quarter worth about $46,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex 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 directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $11,602,669.60. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Paychex in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. UBS Group cut their target price on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $149.70.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $135.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.98 billion, a PE ratio of 29.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $128.92 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $141.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.32. 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 (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, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. Paychex's payout ratio is currently 94.53%.

Paychex 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.

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