Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 47,759 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Hsbc Holdings PLC trimmed its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.2% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 723,499 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 47,759 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $66,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 957.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG boosted its position in Paychex by 2,669.2% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $114.39 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $100.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.98 billion, a PE ratio of 23.39 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $148.11.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PAYX. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Paychex to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Argus raised shares of Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.