Bfsg LLC Makes New $65,000 Investment in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 547 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $65,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 91.5% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total value of $1,865,924.93. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PAYX. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Paychex Price Performance

Paychex stock opened at $121.34 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.09 and a 52 week high of $129.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $122.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.68 billion, a PE ratio of 26.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.93.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.01. Paychex had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 46.14%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.29 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.