Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Has $5.42 Million Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Key Points

• Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 14.7% during the first quarter, holding 35,101 shares valued at approximately $5.42 million after selling 6,039 shares.
• Institutional ownership in Paychex remains high, with 83.47% of shares owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, demonstrating strong market interest.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $150.20 for Paychex, with a mix of ratings indicating a generally stable outlook for the stock.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 14.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,101 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,039 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $5,415,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in Paychex by 118.5% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 136,876 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $21,117,000 after purchasing an additional 74,245 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 32.6% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 119,291 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $18,404,000 after purchasing an additional 29,320 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 15.1% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,419 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Paychex by 7.1% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,607 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 31.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,474 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The shares were 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 directly owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays set a $155.00 price target on Paychex and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price target on Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $150.20.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $139.34 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $149.17 and a 200-day moving average of $148.65. The company has a market cap of $50.20 billion, a PE ratio of 30.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $122.07 and a one year high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

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