Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Acquires 78 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,179 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Avion Wealth grew its position in shares of Paychex by 469.8% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. MilWealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter worth $36,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $144.13 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $147.91 and its 200 day moving average is $142.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.72 and a 52 week high of $158.37. The stock has a market cap of $51.90 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $133.23.

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.