Naples Global Advisors LLC Grows Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,818 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,898 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $7,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the first quarter valued at $3,333,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.2% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 41,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,976,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 47.1% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 156,680 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,790,000 after buying an additional 50,169 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $93.93 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $161.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $92.50 and its 200 day moving average is $103.62. The company has a market cap of $33.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.69 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. This is an increase from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 95.15%.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $99.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Paychex from $123.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $106.38.

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.