Equitable Holdings Inc. Makes New $1.30 Million Investment in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Equitable Holdings purchased 13,189 Paychex shares worth approximately $1.30 million during the second quarter. Other institutions also initiated positions, and institutional investors now own 83.47% of Paychex.
• Paychex exceeded quarterly expectations with $1.32 in EPS and $1.61 billion in revenue, up 12.5% year over year. The company maintains a quarterly dividend of $1.19 per share, implying a 3.7% annual yield.
• Paychex shares opened at $127.04, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $109.20, despite some recent upward target revisions.

Equitable Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 13,189 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,297,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at $886,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Paychex in the second quarter worth $1,247,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Paychex in the second quarter valued at $9,357,000. XXEC Inc. bought a new position in Paychex in the second quarter valued at $15,124,000. Finally, Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter valued at about $1,021,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Paychex Stock Up 0.4%

PAYX opened at $127.04 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.45 and a 12 month high of $139.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The business's 50-day moving average price is $113.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.95. The company has a market cap of $45.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.98 and a beta of 0.81.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during 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%.Paychex's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were paid 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.20.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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