ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd Purchases 742 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd increased its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 18.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,696 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 742 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd’s holdings in Paychex were worth $630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Paychex by 286.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 227.6% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, American National Bank boosted its position in Paychex by 166.7% in the second quarter. American National Bank now owns 288 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 14,731 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.18, for a total value of $2,050,260.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,020,197.70. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 14,731 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.18, for a total transaction of $2,050,260.58. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,020,197.70. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total value of $3,674,284.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,018,020.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,577,231. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.77.

Paychex Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Paychex stock traded down $0.59 on Wednesday, hitting $147.41. 292,362 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,783,203. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $138.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.05 billion, a PE ratio of 31.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.99. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $114.72 and a one year high of $150.71.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.97% and a net margin of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 83.58%.

About Paychex

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.