Sei Investments Co. Cuts Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Sei Investments Co. cut its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 13.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 19,034 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $11,629,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in Paychex during the first quarter valued at $3,333,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Paychex by 3.2% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 41,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,976,000 after purchasing an additional 1,290 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 19.1% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 192,998 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,073,000 after buying an additional 30,945 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, May 28th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Paychex from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $108.20.

Paychex Stock Performance

Paychex stock opened at $116.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.45 and a 1-year high of $146.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.89 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average is $104.42 and its 200 day moving average is $98.61.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The business services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 50.90% and a net margin of 27.03%.Paychex’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.900-6.010 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $1.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.09, for a total transaction of $299,234.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,574.23. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 3,907 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.25, for a total value of $383,862.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 67,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,618,513. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

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.