Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Reduces Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 27.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 191,572 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 71,491 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Paychex were worth $21,491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at $31,000. MMA Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Westfuller Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on PAYX. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Stephens cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $99.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $106.38.

Paychex Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $92.63 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $92.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.66. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 25.84% and a return on equity of 48.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.