Southeast Asset Advisors LLC Buys 2,776 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Key Points

• Southeast Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in Paychex, Inc. by 13.8%, holding a total of 22,876 shares valued at approximately $3.53 million.
• CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares for about $1.76 million, marking a 13.14% decrease in his position, while Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares, reducing his ownership by 17.91%.
• Paychex recently declared a $1.08 quarterly dividend, translating to an annualized yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 94.53%.

Southeast Asset Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 13.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,876 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,776 shares during the period. Southeast Asset Advisors LLC's holdings in Paychex were worth $3,529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 122.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the first quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its position in Paychex by 381.2% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 409 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total transaction of $14,157,849.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 27th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $160.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price objective on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $149.70.

Paychex Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Paychex stock traded up $0.07 on Thursday, hitting $138.72. 1,680,315 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,154,248. The company has a fifty day moving average of $142.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.56. The company has a market capitalization of $49.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $128.92 and a one year high of $161.24.

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. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Paychex's dividend payout ratio is presently 94.53%.

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.