Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Paychex, Inc. by 18.4%, owning 39,635 shares worth approximately $6.1 million after selling 8,920 shares in the first quarter.
• Paychex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $4.32 and a dividend yield of 3.1%.
• Analysts have set new price targets for Paychex, with an average target of $150.20, indicating a mixed sentiment with some rating it as "hold" while others have given "underweight" ratings.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 18.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,635 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 8,920 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $6,115,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 26,905,031 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,772,544,000 after purchasing an additional 166,155 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 694,651 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Paychex by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,104,626 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $575,551,000 after purchasing an additional 208,130 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $438,998,000 after buying an additional 401,552 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Paychex by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,683,141 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $376,226,000 after buying an additional 105,133 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Citigroup set a $158.00 price target on shares of Paychex and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 27th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. 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 company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $150.20.

Paychex Stock Up 1.0%

PAYX traded up $1.44 during trading on Thursday, hitting $140.52. The stock had a trading volume of 1,885,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,073,937. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.43. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.07 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion, a PE ratio of 30.75, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is 94.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex 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 in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, 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 transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares in the company, 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. Corporate 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.