Access Financial Services Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Access Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 950 shares during the period. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Paychex in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Paychex by 91.5% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new position in Paychex in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $122.80 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $44.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.29, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $121.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.09 and a 12-month high of $129.70.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 13th were issued a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 12th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.11%.

Paychex declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PAYX. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $123.00 price objective (down from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Citigroup decreased their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 26th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $122.77.

Insider Activity at Paychex

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.