Czech National Bank Boosts Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Czech National Bank boosted its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 78,358 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,755 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Paychex were worth $11,398,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PAYX. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 122.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 229 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $38,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PAYX. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Barclays set a $155.00 price target on shares of Paychex and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $158.00 to $148.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $149.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the sale, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This trade represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX stock opened at $131.62 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.24 and a 52 week high of $161.24. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $139.90 and its 200 day moving average is $146.28. The firm has a market cap of $47.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.53%.

About Paychex

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.