ING Groep NV Sells 110,850 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

ING Groep NV decreased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 95.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,535 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 110,850 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Paychex were worth $621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 957.1% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. Stance Capital LLC acquired a new position in Paychex in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $101.10 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $36.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $93.61 and its 200-day moving average is $100.16. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $85.45 and a one year high of $155.57.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were paid a $1.19 dividend. This is a boost from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 104.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on Paychex from $120.00 to $99.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Stephens dropped their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $123.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, March 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $106.63.

Paychex 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.