Fisher Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Fisher Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 35.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,717 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,999 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PAYX. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Paychex by 286.0% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 227.6% during 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. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. American National Bank boosted its holdings 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 valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Paychex by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 42.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 14,731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.18, for a total transaction of $2,050,260.58. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,020,197.70. This trade represents a 50.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 54,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,577,231. 11.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.62.

Paychex Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $146.27 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $114.72 and a one year high of $150.71. The company has a market cap of $52.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.19, a PEG ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $141.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.79.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.58%.

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.