Access Financial Services Inc. Has $1.45 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Access Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the quarter. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. bought a new position in Paychex during the second quarter worth $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 91.5% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $122.80 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $121.95 and a 200-day moving average of $119.51. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $104.09 and a one year high of $129.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $44.19 billion, a PE ratio of 27.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.94.

Paychex declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 12th. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Paychex’s payout ratio is 79.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 11.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $122.77.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.