Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Acquired by Godsey & Gibb Inc.

Godsey & Gibb Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 14.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 187,744 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,660 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. owned about 0.05% of Paychex worth $17,295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in Paychex by 957.1% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the third quarter worth $31,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Argus raised Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup raised shares of Paychex from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $99.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.07.

Paychex Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $97.99 on Wednesday. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $152.57. The business’s fifty day moving average is $95.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $35.11 billion, a PE ratio of 21.58 and a beta of 0.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $1.19 dividend. This is a positive change from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.85%.

Paychex Company 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.