Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Price Target Raised to $158.00

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) had its target price boosted by Citigroup from $145.00 to $158.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Paychex from $141.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group raised their price target on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $137.58.

Paychex Price Performance

PAYX opened at $151.03 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.38 billion, a PE ratio of 31.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The business’s 50-day moving average is $148.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.30. Paychex has a 1 year low of $114.72 and a 1 year high of $158.37.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.38 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Paychex will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 89,971 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,616,000 after purchasing an additional 3,406 shares in the last quarter. Aegis Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at $370,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $367,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Paychex by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,303 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the period. Finally, GHE LLC increased its holdings in Paychex by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. GHE LLC now owns 21,365 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,996,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.