Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Receives $108.20 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have given a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $109.20.

Several research firms have commented on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total value 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 through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the transaction, the director owned 67,364 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,513. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Leonteq Securities AG boosted its holdings in Paychex by 2,669.2% in the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 360 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX stock opened at $122.02 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.40 billion, a PE ratio of 24.95 and a beta of 0.81. Paychex has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $141.19. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.34.

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

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.34%.

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.