Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Position Decreased by Buckhead Capital Management LLC

Buckhead Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,933 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 168 shares during the quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Mutual Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 42.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 1.8% in the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 4,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $575,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Weaver Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 2,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adero Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 2,391 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $148.63 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $53.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.29, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.00. 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 fifty-two week low of $114.72 and a fifty-two week high of $151.72. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $143.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.62.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.28% and a net margin of 32.02%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. 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 will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 82.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 20th. 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.