Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Makes New $2.80 Million Investment in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 28,506 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,803,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PAYX. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 957.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $118.54 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $109.31 and a 200 day moving average of $99.43. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.45 and a twelve month high of $141.19.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s 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 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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.