Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by Mediolanum International Funds Ltd

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 30.9%, holding 12,482 shares valued at approximately $1.89 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their positions in Paychex, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by 20,236.7% and Northern Trust Corp growing its ownership by 16.9%.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.93%, with the ex-dividend date set for July 21st.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 30.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,482 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 5,581 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Paychex were worth $1,885,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 220.7% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Tsfg LLC boosted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Paychex during the first quarter valued at $46,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $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 available at this link. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. This represents 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.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ PAYX traded down $4.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $140.09. The stock had a trading volume of 1,333,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,136,468. The firm's 50 day moving average is $149.51 and its 200 day moving average is $148.62. 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 market capitalization of $50.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.71, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.88. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.07 and a twelve month high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released 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. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Paychex in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Citigroup set a $158.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $150.20.

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.