Kathmere Capital Management LLC Buys 289 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 11.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,760 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fortis Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Paychex by 55.8% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 307 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Paychex during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $118.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $122.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.95. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $106.27 and a 1-year high of $129.70. The firm has a market cap of $42.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.96.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 46.63%. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were issued a $0.98 dividend. This is a positive change from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.94%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total transaction of $2,454,755.95. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $670,452.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PAYX shares. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America upped their target price on Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $122.62.

About Paychex

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.