Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Takes $4.57 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 46,506 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,573,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,348,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,750,669,000 after purchasing an additional 4,583,157 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S increased its holdings in Paychex by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 205,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,035,000 after buying an additional 25,184 shares during the period. Comerica Bank raised its stake in Paychex by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,705 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,653,000 after buying an additional 11,497 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp raised its stake in Paychex by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 208,150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $23,350,000 after buying an additional 51,982 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex during the second quarter worth $7,296,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Paychex Trading Down 0.0%

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $124.47 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.45 and a beta of 0.81. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.45 and a 52 week high of $141.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $111.08 and a 200 day moving average of $99.99.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 50.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $107.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Paychex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Paychex currently has an average 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.