Korea Investment CORP Acquires 31,336 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Korea Investment Corp. has increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. by 19.2% in the first quarter, owning 0.05% of the company, valued at $30.03 million.
• Paychex announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.1%, with a dividend payout ratio of 94.53%.
• Paychex's stock has a market capitalization of $50.08 billion and reported earnings of $1.19 per share, meeting analysts' expectations, along with a revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter.

Korea Investment CORP raised its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 19.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 194,637 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,336 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.05% of Paychex worth $30,029,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Qtron Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter valued at approximately $251,000. Alpha Family Trust grew its stake in Paychex by 22.6% in the first quarter. Alpha Family Trust now owns 2,635 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 17.6% in the first quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 13,542 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,089,000 after acquiring an additional 2,026 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Paychex by 3.8% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,989,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $769,731,000 after acquiring an additional 181,628 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 44.6% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 4,321 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,332 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Barclays set a $155.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $149.70.

Paychex Stock Performance

Paychex stock traded up $2.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $140.81. 2,066,281 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,159,591. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $143.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.73 billion, a PE ratio of 30.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $127.76 and a one year high of $161.24. 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 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%.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 company posted $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is currently 94.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.