Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Stock Position Cut by Guinness Asset Management LTD

Guinness Asset Management LTD decreased its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,606,726 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 43,032 shares during the period. Paychex makes up approximately 4.8% of Guinness Asset Management LTD’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Guinness Asset Management LTD owned 0.45% of Paychex worth $247,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Tsfg LLC raised its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex in the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $135.46 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $131.83 and a 12-month high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $48.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.64, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day moving average of $140.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 94.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Paychex in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on Paychex and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $149.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Paychex Profile

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.