Guggenheim Capital LLC Lowers Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC has reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 26.9%, holding now 85,213 shares valued at approximately $13.15 million.
• Recent insider transactions include Chairman Martin Mucci selling 97,526 shares and CEO John B. Gibson selling 12,370 shares, both indicating a decrease in their ownership positions.
• Analysts have adjusted their price targets for Paychex, with a consensus target price of $149.70 and the majority rating the stock as “Hold” or “Neutral.”

Guggenheim Capital LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 26.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 85,213 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 31,314 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Paychex were worth $13,147,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PAYX. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first 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. Tsfg LLC lifted 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. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in Paychex by 381.2% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 409 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $149.70.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $138.65 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $49.95 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.91. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $142.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.56. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $128.92 and a 12-month high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.

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