Perigon Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Perigon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 4,476 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $440,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Paychex by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $566,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the first quarter valued at $3,333,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.2% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 41,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,976,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 47.1% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 156,680 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,790,000 after acquiring an additional 50,169 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $122.50 on Thursday. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $141.19. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $110.13 and its 200 day moving average is $99.70. The company has a market cap of $43.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.05 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,574.23. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

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.