International Assets Investment Management LLC Reduces Stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

International Assets Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 99.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,601 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 796,306 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $499,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 286.0% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in Paychex by 42.0% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $139.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.07 billion, a PE ratio of 29.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $142.35 and a 200-day moving average of $134.33. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.72 and a 52-week high of $150.71.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.97% and a net margin of 31.98%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. The trade was a 42.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 11.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.23.

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.