Ieq Capital LLC Buys New Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC purchased 147,345 Paychex shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $14.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.47% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with Paychex carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $109.20; targets range from $107 to $150.
• Paychex reported quarterly EPS of $1.32 and revenue of $1.61 billion, while declaring a $1.19 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 3.8% annualized yield. Shares opened at $124.47, up 1.3%.

Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 147,345 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $14,488,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Paychex by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,750,669,000 after buying an additional 4,583,157 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S boosted its position in Paychex by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $23,035,000 after buying an additional 25,184 shares during the period. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in Paychex by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,653,000 after acquiring an additional 11,497 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in Paychex by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 208,150 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,350,000 after acquiring an additional 51,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at about $7,296,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paychex from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Citigroup increased 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Paychex currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $109.20.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Paychex Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $124.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.45 and a 12-month high of $141.19. The company has a market cap of $44.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.45 and a beta of 0.81. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $111.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.01.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

About Paychex

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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