Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by Griffin Asset Management Inc.

Griffin Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,497 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 793 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $2,453,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Paychex by 42.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Paychex by 152.6% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Paychex by 805.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PAYX. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.23.

Paychex Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $148.04 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $142.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.43. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.72 and a 1-year high of $150.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market cap of $53.30 billion, a PE ratio of 31.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.53%.

About Paychex

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.