Stifel Nicolaus Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Stock Price

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $156.00 to $152.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "hold" rating on the business services provider's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price target points to a potential upside of 5.55% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup set a $158.00 price objective on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Paychex to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays set a $155.00 price target on shares of Paychex and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.55.

Paychex Price Performance

Paychex stock traded up $3.00 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $144.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,273,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,953,527. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.87 billion, a PE ratio of 31.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.92. Paychex has a fifty-two week low of $115.40 and a fifty-two week high of $161.24. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $151.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total value of $544,762.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 78,455 shares in the company, valued at $11,709,408.75. This trade represents a 4.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 220.7% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the first quarter worth $34,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.