Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Given New $137.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Key Points

• Paychex's target price has been lowered from $142.00 to $137.00 by Stifel Nicolaus, maintaining a "hold" rating for the stock.
• Analysts' consensus rating for Paychex is currently "Reduce" with an average price target of $142.83.
• The company reported a 16.8% year-over-year revenue increase, with earnings per share of $1.22 surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.20.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $142.00 to $137.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "hold" rating on the business services provider's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.06% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $130.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Paychex from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $132.00 price objective on Paychex in a research report on Wednesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $142.83.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $126.78 on Wednesday. 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 has a twelve month low of $119.02 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $137.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $144.86. The firm has a market cap of $45.59 billion, a PE ratio of 27.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The business services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.428-5.528 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $14,157,849.42. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC increased its position in Paychex by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $566,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 18.1% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 19,746 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,046,000 after buying an additional 3,020 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 6.4% in the first quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 8,829 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,362,000 after acquiring an additional 532 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 3,934 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $607,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.