Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Makes New $8.03 Million Investment in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 80,464 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $8,031,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $801,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $566,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in Paychex in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,333,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 3.2% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 41,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,976,000 after acquiring an additional 1,290 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 50,169 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Performance

PAYX opened at $127.04 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $113.76 and its 200-day moving average is $100.95. The stock has a market cap of $45.19 billion, a PE ratio of 25.98 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.45 and a twelve month high of $139.53.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were given a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 97.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup increased their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Weiss Ratings raised Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Company 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.