Howland Capital Management LLC Sells 790 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Howland Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,502 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 790 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $4,838,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 2,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 4,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 2,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $146.74 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $114.72 and a 12-month high of $151.72. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $143.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $138.05. The company has a market capitalization of $52.84 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.28% and a net margin of 32.02%. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Barclays raised 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.23.

Paychex 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.