Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to Strong Sell Rating

Key Points

• Paychex has been downgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to a "strong sell" rating, indicating a significant shift in analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Other analysts have mixed views, with ratings ranging from "buy" to "underperform," and the consensus target price for the stock is currently $140.47.
• In its last quarterly earnings report, Paychex reported an EPS of $1.22, exceeding expectations, with a revenue increase of 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Stephens upgraded Paychex to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Paychex from $153.00 to $148.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Paychex from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price target on Paychex and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research reduced their price objective on Paychex from $145.00 to $140.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $140.47.

Paychex Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $126.61 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $45.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.92. Paychex has a 52 week low of $119.02 and a 52 week high of $161.24. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $131.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The business services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.17% and a net margin of 27.85%.The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.16 earnings per share. Paychex's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.428-5.528 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Summit Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 2.4% in the first quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,027 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. LGT Group Foundation grew its stake in Paychex by 2.8% in the first quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 2,528 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 1.0% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,954 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. King Wealth Management Group grew its stake in Paychex by 4.7% in the first quarter. King Wealth Management Group now owns 1,669 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunflower Bank N.A. grew its stake in Paychex by 3.4% in the second quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 2,305 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

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.

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