Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 73,851 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Paychex by 13.8%, acquiring a total of 608,910 shares valued at approximately $93.9 million.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for July 21.
• Wall Street analysts exhibit a mixed outlook on Paychex, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price averaging $150.20.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 13.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 608,910 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 73,851 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.17% of Paychex worth $93,943,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 20,236.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,153,089 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $177,899,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147,419 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 7.3% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,782,173 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,663,474,000 after purchasing an additional 737,542 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Paychex by 16.9% during 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 last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Paychex by 25.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,844,949 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $438,919,000 after acquiring an additional 581,410 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Paychex by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,519,430 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $213,054,000 after purchasing an additional 460,295 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PAYX. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup set a $158.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price target on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $150.20.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of Paychex stock traded down $1.51 on Tuesday, reaching $137.09. The stock had a trading volume of 694,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,141,443. The stock has a market cap of $49.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.35 and a fifty-two week high of $161.24. The business's 50-day moving average price is $147.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $148.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released 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. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.53%.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the 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 sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

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.