Raleigh Capital Management Inc. Has $1.28 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 71,212.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 11,410 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,394 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Stance Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. MMA Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $91.85 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.90. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $86.89 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.91 billion, a PE ratio of 20.23 and a beta of 0.88.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, January 16th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 95.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on PAYX shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $108.81.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.