Flputnam Investment Management Co. Acquires New Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Flputnam Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,659 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $851,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 957.1% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group upped their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.20.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $118.54 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $109.31 and its 200-day moving average is $99.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.24 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $141.19.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Paychex Profile

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.