XXEC Inc. Purchases Shares of 108,492,809 Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

XXEC Inc. purchased a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 108,492,809 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,016,000. Paychex comprises approximately 0.6% of XXEC Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. XXEC Inc. owned 30.50% of Paychex at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westpac Banking Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the second quarter valued at $1,406,000. TRB Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth $327,000. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. purchased a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth $7,267,000. Korea Investment CORP purchased a new position in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth $13,923,000. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,333,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on PAYX shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. 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 issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.20.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $124.47 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $111.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.01. The company has a market capitalization of $44.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.45 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $141.19.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The business’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. 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 year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.34%.

Paychex Company 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.