Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by LGT Financial Advisors LLC

LGT Financial Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 49.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 945 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 907 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Paychex by 286.0% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Paychex by 227.6% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the first quarter worth $31,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Up 6.3 %

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $148.59 on Thursday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.82 and a 52 week high of $149.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $137.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.97% and a net margin of 31.98%. Paychex’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 14,731 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.18, for a total value of $2,050,260.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,020,197.70. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 14,731 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.18, for a total transaction of $2,050,260.58. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,020,197.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 54,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,577,231 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Barclays raised their target price on Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $130.77.

About Paychex

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.