Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Trims Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 23.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,052 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 642 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 91.5% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Paychex Stock Performance

PAYX opened at $117.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $42.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.14. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $104.09 and a 1-year high of $129.70.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. The company’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 11.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.