Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Acquired by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,904 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,988 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $11,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Avion Wealth lifted its position in Paychex by 469.8% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the third quarter valued at $36,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of PAYX opened at $154.52 on Tuesday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.72 and a 52-week high of $158.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $146.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.83. The company has a market capitalization of $55.64 billion, a PE ratio of 32.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. Paychex’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Paychex’s payout ratio is 82.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.23.

Paychex Company Profile

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.