First Financial Bank Trust Division Reduces Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

First Financial Bank Trust Division trimmed its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 18.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,771 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 640 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Paychex were worth $403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 122.3% during 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 period. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $135.11 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $131.83 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $140.44 and a 200 day moving average of $146.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.59 billion, a PE ratio of 29.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total transaction of $14,157,849.42. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 446,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Barclays set a $155.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $149.70.

About Paychex

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.