Clarkston Capital Partners LLC Sells 178,288 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 90.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 19,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 178,288 shares during the period. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Paychex by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,395,583,000 after acquiring an additional 11,243,295 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,750,669,000 after purchasing an additional 4,583,157 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Paychex by 4,141.2% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,409,229 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $270,267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,352,423 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth $257,699,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth about $117,809,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

PAYX stock opened at $110.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.36 billion, a PE ratio of 22.63 and a beta of 0.84. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.45 and a 12-month high of $148.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.30.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Paychex’s payout ratio is 97.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.53.

About Paychex

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.