Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Position Reduced by Cornerstone Advisors LLC

Cornerstone Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 13.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,200 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,700 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,328,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Paychex by 286.0% during 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 lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 227.6% in the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, American National Bank lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 166.7% in the 2nd quarter. American National Bank now owns 288 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $135.19 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $126.74 and its 200-day moving average is $123.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $106.27 and a 12-month high of $137.40.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 46.63%. The business’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 1st. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $121.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. 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 Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.00.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 9,615 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total value of $1,207,644.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $676,104.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 9,615 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total value of $1,207,644.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $676,104.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 8,954 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.60, for a total transaction of $1,106,714.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 79,232 shares in the company, valued at $9,793,075.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 147,163 shares of company stock valued at $17,537,817 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Company 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.