13,186 Shares in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Bought by Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC

Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 13,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,297,000.

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

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX stock opened at $122.02 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $108.92 and a 200-day moving average of $99.34. The company has a market cap of $43.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.95 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.45 and a 12-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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%.Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total transaction of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.20.

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.