Argent Trust Co Decreases Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Argent Trust Co lessened its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 13.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,795 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,167 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Paychex were worth $924,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 286.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 227.6% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the second quarter worth $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total value of $1,106,714.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 79,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,793,075.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 14,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.21, for a total transaction of $1,807,281.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at $674,005.43. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total value of $1,106,714.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 79,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,793,075.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,163 shares of company stock worth $17,537,817 in the last 90 days. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PAYX. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Paychex from $121.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Bank of America upped their target price on Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Paychex Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $133.17 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $127.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.37. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $106.27 and a 1-year high of $137.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 46.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 8th were issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 8th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.94%.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.