PFG Investments LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

PFG Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 10.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,090 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 502 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $606,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Paychex during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Paychex by 91.5% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PAYX shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $123.00 target price (down from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Barclays decreased their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.77.

Paychex Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $121.53 on Thursday. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.09 and a twelve month high of $129.70. The firm has a market cap of $43.73 billion, a PE ratio of 27.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $121.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 13th were issued a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 12th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 79.11%.

Paychex announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total value of $1,865,924.93. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.