Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Position Boosted by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 29,967 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 446 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Paychex were worth $3,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Griffin Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,225 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. raised its position in shares of Paychex by 2.3% during the third quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 4,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $472,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,852 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Marino Stram & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 5,789 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $121.23 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $43.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.41, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.09 and a fifty-two week high of $129.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $122.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.30.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 46.14%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, January 19th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 26th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.