Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Boosts Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 42.0%, holding a total of 41,282 shares worth approximately $6.37 million as of the last report.
• In July, Chairman Martin Mucci and CEO John B. Gibson sold portions of their shares, with Mucci's sale representing a 17.91% decrease in his holdings.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 94.53%.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 42.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,282 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 12,206 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $6,369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Tsfg LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 122.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chairman directly owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. This represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the company'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 owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on PAYX. UBS Group reduced 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. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Citigroup set a $158.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Barclays set a $155.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.70.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $138.25 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $124.64 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

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 paid 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 is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is 94.53%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.