Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by Intech Investment Management LLC

Intech Investment Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 76.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,823 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 171,365 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $6,263,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its holdings in Paychex by 1.2% in the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 7,362 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,543 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 1.1% in the first quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 9,074 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.2% in the first quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.3% in the first quarter. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $121.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,287,448.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total value of $1,514,445.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,663,199.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,287,448.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 147,163 shares of company stock worth $17,537,817. Company insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $133.26 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $128.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $123.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $47.97 billion, a PE ratio of 28.54, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $106.27 and a 1 year high of $137.40.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

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

Paychex Company 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.