Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Has $2.41 Million Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. reduced its stake in Paychex by 36.2%, selling 12,194 shares and leaving 21,516 shares valued at about $2.41 million at quarter-end.
• Paychex beat quarterly expectations with $1.71 EPS vs. $1.67 estimate and 19.9% revenue growth to $1.81 billion, and its board authorized a $1.0 billion share repurchase (up to 2.5% of outstanding shares).
• Analysts have pared targets recently and MarketBeat shows an average rating of "Reduce" with an average price target of $106.38, while the stock trades near $92 within a 52‑week range of $85.45–$161.24.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 36.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,516 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 12,194 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 17.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,765,468 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,787,151,000 after acquiring an additional 5,549,511 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the third quarter worth approximately $117,809,000. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 15.9% in the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 4,051,413 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $589,319,000 after acquiring an additional 557,101 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 38.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,856,157 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $235,286,000 after acquiring an additional 511,728 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 48.9% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,260,376 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $155,341,000 after acquiring an additional 414,196 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $92.13 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.45 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The business's 50 day moving average price is $92.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.99. The firm has a market cap of $33.01 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29 and a beta of 0.88.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, January 16th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on PAYX. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Paychex from $120.00 to $99.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $102.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on Paychex from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $106.38.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas "Tom" Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company's core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers' compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.

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