LPL Financial LLC Raises Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 3.2%, holding 821,358 shares valued at $126.72 million at the end of the most recent quarter.
• A majority of Paychex stock, approximately 83.47%, is owned by hedge funds and institutional investors, reflecting strong interest from major financial players.
• Paychex announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.95%, with a payout date set for August 29th.

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 3.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 821,358 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 25,492 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.23% of Paychex worth $126,719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Paychex by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 26,905,031 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,772,544,000 after acquiring an additional 166,155 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,541,034 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,339,463,000 after acquiring an additional 126,962 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Paychex by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,807,554 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $674,115,000 after acquiring an additional 694,651 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Paychex by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,104,626 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $575,551,000 after acquiring an additional 208,130 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,130,781 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $438,998,000 after acquiring an additional 401,552 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PAYX shares. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Barclays set a $155.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price target on Paychex and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price target on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $150.20.

Paychex Stock Down 1.2%

PAYX stock opened at $146.26 on Tuesday. 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 company's 50 day moving average is $150.16 and its 200 day moving average is $148.62. The stock has a market cap of $52.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.88. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.07 and a 1-year high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.53%.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In related news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. This trade represents 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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Paychex

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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