O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 124,185 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,705 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $17,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RWA Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Paychex by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,309 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 509 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in shares of Paychex by 86.5% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,355,713 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $189,746,000 after acquiring an additional 628,912 shares during the period. Allianz SE purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,613,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Intrust Bank NA lifted its stake in Paychex by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 2,578 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their target price on Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Paychex from $141.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $137.58.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $151.03 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.72 and a 1 year high of $158.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.38 billion, a PE ratio of 31.80, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

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

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.