Korea Investment CORP Invests $13.92 Million in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Korea Investment CORP acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 141,597 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $13,923,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. 44 Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Paychex by 2.7% in the second quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.5% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,645 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 7,270 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $922,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 798 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management boosted its position in Paychex by 5.1% during the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 2,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 0.0%

PAYX stock opened at $124.47 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.45 and a fifty-two week high of $141.19. The company has a market capitalization of $44.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.45 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $111.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.34%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Weiss Ratings raised Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.