Renaissance Technologies LLC Boosts Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,166,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 72,000 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 0.33% of Paychex worth $107,430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Paychex Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $113.55 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $102.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.40. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $148.11. The firm has a market cap of $40.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.22 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid 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 4.2%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $107.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.53.

Paychex Profile

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.