Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Sold by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC decreased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 312,328 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,854 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $28,772,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Stance Capital LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Paychex from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $140.00 in a report on Monday, June 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.07.

Paychex Trading Up 2.1%

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $97.99 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $95.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.36. The company has a market capitalization of $35.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.58 and a beta of 0.84. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.45 and a 12 month high of $152.57.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a net margin of 25.84% and a return on equity of 48.52%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $1.19 per share. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. This is an increase from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 104.85%.

Paychex 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.