NorthRock Partners LLC Acquires New Shares in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

NorthRock Partners LLC bought a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 3,652 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $512,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Paychex by 220.7% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Avion Wealth boosted its stake in Paychex by 469.8% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total value of $544,762.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 78,455 shares in the company, valued at $11,709,408.75. This represents a 4.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Paychex Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Paychex stock traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $157.67. 1,466,973 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,925,567. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $56.79 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $147.52 and a 200-day moving average of $145.89. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.40 and a 12 month high of $158.40.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.28% and a net margin of 32.02%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. This is a positive change from Paychex's previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Paychex's payout ratio is presently 90.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Cfra Research raised Paychex to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Paychex from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $141.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $141.00.

Paychex 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.