HBK Sorce Advisory LLC Invests $1.27 Million in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 10,738 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,270,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Paychex by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,750,669,000 after buying an additional 4,583,157 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,035,000 after acquiring an additional 25,184 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,653,000 after purchasing an additional 11,497 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in Paychex by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 208,150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $23,350,000 after purchasing an additional 51,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 230.6% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,461 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,081,000 after purchasing an additional 19,155 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PAYX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.20.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $122.02 on Monday. 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.40 billion, a PE ratio of 24.95 and a beta of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $108.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.34.

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. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during 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%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the 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 transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction 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 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.

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.