Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by RWC Asset Management LLP

RWC Asset Management LLP decreased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 224,841 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 13,034 shares during the quarter. Paychex makes up 1.6% of RWC Asset Management LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. RWC Asset Management LLP owned approximately 0.06% of Paychex worth $26,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Paychex in the third quarter worth $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 91.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total value of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company's stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX traded down $2.00 on Friday, hitting $119.97. The stock had a trading volume of 2,400,533 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,120,168. The stock has a market cap of $43.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $121.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.38. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.09 and a 52-week high of $129.70.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.