Ramirez Asset Management Inc. Grows Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Ramirez Asset Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 176.5%, now owning 14,412 shares valued at $2.1 million.
• CEO John B. Gibson recently sold 12,370 shares for approximately $1.76 million, reducing his ownership by 13.14%.
• Paychex will pay a quarterly dividend of **$1.08** on November 26, representing an annualized yield of **3.5%**.

Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 176.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,412 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,200 shares during the quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in Paychex by 118.5% during 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 buying an additional 74,245 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 32.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 119,291 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $18,404,000 after purchasing an additional 29,320 shares during the last quarter. Martin Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 166.9% in the 2nd quarter. Martin Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,340 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $922,000 after purchasing an additional 3,965 shares during the last quarter. MWA Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 4,269 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $659,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $832,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $125.21 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $134.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.86. The stock has a market cap of $45.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.92. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.02 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The business services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.17% and a net margin of 27.85%.Paychex's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.428-5.528 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Paychex's payout ratio is currently 97.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on PAYX. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Paychex from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Paychex from $153.00 to $140.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Paychex from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $141.29.

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.

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