Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Sells 47,257 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,599,965 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 47,257 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $190,572,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 91.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 39.8% during the third quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 351 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Trading Down 1.6 %

PAYX opened at $119.97 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $121.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $43.18 billion, a PE ratio of 26.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.93. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.09 and a twelve month high of $129.70.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in 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 usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 11.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PAYX. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.00.

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.