Czech National Bank Has $11.36 Million Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Czech National Bank grew its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 73,603 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,153 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Paychex were worth $11,355,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 220.7% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Avion Wealth lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 469.8% in the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Up 0.2%

PAYX stock opened at $157.66 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.40 and a twelve month high of $159.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $149.61 and its 200-day moving average is $146.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.79 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.28% and a net margin of 32.02%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. This is a positive change from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total transaction of $544,762.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 78,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,709,408.75. This trade represents a 4.45% 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. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Paychex from $145.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group increased their price target on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Paychex from $141.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Paychex from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.00.

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.