22,824 Shares in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Purchased by Sciencast Management LP

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP has acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc., purchasing 22,824 shares valued at approximately $3.52 million, as reported in a recent SEC filing.
• Paychex announced a quarterly dividend of $1.08 per share, representing a 3.2% dividend yield on an annualized basis, with a payout ratio of 94.53%.
• The company reported earnings of $1.19 per share for the last quarter, matching expectations, while revenue rose to $1.43 billion, surpassing estimates of $1.38 billion.

Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 22,824 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,521,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Summit Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 2.4% in the first quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,027 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 2.8% in 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 Paychex by 0.9% in the first quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 7,623 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Paychex by 2.4% in the first 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 lifted its position in Paychex by 4.7% in the first 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX traded down $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $135.11. 1,305,369 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,876,443. The firm has a market cap of $48.59 billion, a PE ratio of 29.56, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.91. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $140.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.53. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $131.83 and a 12 month high of $161.24. 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 (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%.During the same period last year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st were paid a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PAYX has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group reduced their target price on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Citigroup reduced 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 reduced their target price on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $149.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the firm's 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 directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.80% 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.