Burney Co. Has $730,000 Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Burney Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 15.4% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,947 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,083 shares during the quarter. Burney Co.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $730,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 55.8% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Paychex

In other news, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total value of $1,514,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,663,199.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total value of $11,901,732.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,287,448.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,670 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.53, for a total transaction of $1,514,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,663,199.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 152,438 shares of company stock worth $18,185,292. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of PAYX traded up $0.79 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $127.28. The stock had a trading volume of 2,415,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,943,847. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $106.27 and a 1-year high of $129.92.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 32.03%. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.97 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $122.46.

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.