Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Stock Holdings Cut by Mcdonald Capital Investors Inc. CA

Mcdonald Capital Investors Inc. CA cut its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 899,476 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 12,170 shares during the period. Paychex accounts for 8.7% of Mcdonald Capital Investors Inc. CA's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Mcdonald Capital Investors Inc. CA owned approximately 0.25% of Paychex worth $138,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Paychex by 220.7% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter worth $34,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 122.3% in the first 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. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating 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 note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Citigroup set a $158.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. One investment 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 a consensus target price of $150.20.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ PAYX traded down $2.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $143.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,910,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,981,500. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.58 and a 12 month high of $161.24. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $151.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.26. The company has a market cap of $51.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS 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 company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. Paychex's payout ratio is 94.53%.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total value of $544,762.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 78,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,709,408.75. This trade represents a 4.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the firm's 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 directly owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Paychex

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.