Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Bought by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 43.1% during the first quarter, now owning 131,439 shares valued at approximately $20.3 million.
• Paychex will pay a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share on August 29th, representing a yield of 2.92%.
• The company's shares have a current market capitalization of $53.31 billion, with a PE ratio of 32.38 and a consensus target price of $150.20.

Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 43.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,439 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 39,565 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $20,278,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in Paychex by 118.5% in the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 136,876 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $21,117,000 after purchasing an additional 74,245 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 32.6% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 119,291 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $18,404,000 after buying an additional 29,320 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 15.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,419 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 7.1% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,607 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,174,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Paychex by 31.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,474 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 1,804 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PAYX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price target on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. 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. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $150.20.

Insider Activity at Paychex

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

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX traded down $0.41 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $146.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 349,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,130,006. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $149.95 and a 200 day moving average of $148.61. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.07 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.91 billion, a PE ratio of 32.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.88.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid 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 2.94%. Paychex's payout ratio is 94.53%.

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.