Independence Bank of Kentucky Trims Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Independence Bank of Kentucky lessened its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,761 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 1,190 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 89,971 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,616,000 after buying an additional 3,406 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in Paychex in the first quarter valued at $179,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 20,236.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,153,089 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $177,899,000 after buying an additional 1,147,419 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

PAYX opened at $128.21 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.11 billion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.91. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $126.13 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $137.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.11. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 94.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on PAYX. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $160.00 to $143.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $145.91.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In related news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,878,940.89. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares in the company, valued at $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 Company 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.