JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Stock

Key Points

• Paychex's price target has been raised from $148.00 to $153.00 by JPMorgan Chase & Co., indicating a potential upside of 10.52% from its previous close.
• Despite the price increase from JPMorgan, the firm maintains an "underweight" rating on Paychex's stock, while several other analysts have issued hold or reduced ratings.
• Paychex's CEO and Chairman have both recently sold significant shares of stock, reflecting a decrease in their positions, which could be viewed as a concerning signal for investors.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $148.00 to $153.00 in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an underweight rating on the business services provider's stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Barclays set a $155.00 target price on Paychex and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Paychex currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $150.70.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $139.01. The stock had a trading volume of 2,116,985 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,117,423. Paychex has a one year low of $124.64 and a one year high of $161.24. The firm has a market cap of $50.08 billion, a PE ratio of 30.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $144.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $148.04. 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 (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.01% and a net margin of 29.75%.The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Paychex will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,602,669.60. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 completion of the sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake 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 period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Paychex by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 30,374 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,259,000 after buying an additional 2,980 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Paychex by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,681 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,217,000 after buying an additional 1,667 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 38,319 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $227,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.