Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. Has $2.87 Million Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,499 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the quarter. Paychex comprises about 1.4% of Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,874,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Avion Wealth grew its stake in Paychex by 469.8% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Up 2.4 %

PAYX stock opened at $153.48 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $55.26 billion, a PE ratio of 32.31, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $146.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.64. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $114.72 and a one year high of $154.98.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Paychex’s payout ratio is 82.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PAYX shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $133.23.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.