Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Purchased by Fenimore Asset Management Inc

Fenimore Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 419,387 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 945 shares during the period. Paychex makes up approximately 1.2% of Fenimore Asset Management Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Fenimore Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Paychex were worth $58,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Paychex by 42.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Paychex by 152.6% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Paychex by 805.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.23.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX stock opened at $146.11 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $142.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.16. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $114.72 and a 12-month high of $150.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $52.61 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.68%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.53%.

Paychex 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.