Rise Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Rise Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,237 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Paychex accounts for 0.5% of Rise Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Rise Advisors LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heritage Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 260.0% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Cambridge Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Paychex by 254.4% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 319 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Old North State Trust LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 164.7% in the first quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 802 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avalon Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $40,000. 72.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 12,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.02, for a total transaction of $1,373,871.12. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 53,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,042,049.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 12,156 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.02, for a total transaction of $1,373,871.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 53,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,042,049.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph M. Tucci sold 10,850 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.99, for a total value of $1,258,491.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 53,460 shares in the company, valued at $6,200,825.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 221,916 shares of company stock worth $26,789,753 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX traded down $2.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $115.97. 3,431,454 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,253,819. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.09 and a fifty-two week high of $129.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $122.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $114.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of 26.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 29th. The business services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.97. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.79% and a net margin of 31.10%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 9th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Paychex in a report on Tuesday, September 5th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 in a report on Monday, July 3rd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $109.00 to $106.00 in a report on Sunday, July 2nd. SpectralCast restated a “reiterates” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, June 30th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Paychex from $105.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Friday, June 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.12.

About Paychex

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.