Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Acquired by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 100.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,521 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,788 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Paychex were worth $4,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Paychex by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,215,957 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,686,133,000 after purchasing an additional 408,114 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Paychex by 2.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,066,067 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,046,050,000 after buying an additional 355,294 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Paychex by 2.3% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,033,312 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,604,906,000 after buying an additional 251,139 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,183,871 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,481,053,000 after acquiring an additional 274,947 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,384,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $637,820,000 after acquiring an additional 249,550 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on PAYX. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Stephens decreased their price objective on Paychex from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Paychex from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $125.67.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $110.29 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $39.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.80 and a 12 month high of $161.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $112.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.86.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.38% and a net margin of 26.45%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Paychex

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.