Royal Bank of Canada Sells 320,235 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada sold 320,235 shares of Paychex, reducing its ownership by 17.7%, and now holds about 1.49 million shares worth approximately $229.68 million.
• Paychex recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, resulting in an annual dividend yield of 3.1%.
• Insider trading revealed that Chairman Martin Mucci and CEO John B. Gibson sold over 109,000 shares combined, reflecting significant decreases in their respective ownership stakes.

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 17.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,488,709 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 320,235 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.41% of Paychex worth $229,678,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 2.4% during the first quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,027 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.8% during the first quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 2,528 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Golden State Equity Partners lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 7,623 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,176,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, King Wealth Management Group grew its position in Paychex by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. King Wealth Management Group now owns 1,669 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup decreased their target price on Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered 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. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $149.70.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ PAYX traded up $1.69 during trading on Thursday, hitting $137.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,995,634 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,974,866. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $128.92 and a 52 week high of $161.24. The firm has a market cap of $49.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $141.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

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