6,830 Shares in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Acquired by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 6,830 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $672,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. XXEC Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,123,016,000. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Paychex by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,265,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,395,583,000 after acquiring an additional 11,243,295 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,728,970,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,988,393 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,569,218,000 after purchasing an additional 216,045 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,550,173 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,295,698,000 after purchasing an additional 263,152 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $127.04 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $100.95. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $139.53. The stock has a market cap of $45.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.98 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 (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on PAYX. 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 report on Thursday, June 25th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. TD Cowen boosted 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, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.20.

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.