Summit Global Investments Boosts Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Summit Global Investments lifted its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 1,938.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 48,143 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,781 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Paychex were worth $6,103,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 83.8% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 215 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 40.6% in the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 263 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Paychex by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Down 0.2%

Paychex stock opened at $102.23 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.18 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.53 and a fifty-two week high of $161.24. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $111.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.03.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.38% and a net margin of 26.45%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be given a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 97.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Citigroup cut their price target on Paychex from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Paychex to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $110.00 price objective on Paychex in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Wolfe Research decreased their target price on Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $123.94.

Paychex Company Profile

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.