Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 63,899 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,669 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Paychex were worth $7,611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 91.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 39.8% during the third quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 351 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $122.52 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.93. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.09 and a 12 month high of $129.70. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PAYX has been the topic of several research reports. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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.