PFG Investments LLC Buys 682 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

PFG Investments LLC grew its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 13.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,772 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 682 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $709,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the third quarter worth $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paychex by 91.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC boosted 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 worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX traded up $0.84 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $120.81. The stock had a trading volume of 1,925,934 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,818,135. The firm has a market cap of $43.49 billion, a PE ratio of 26.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.41. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $104.09 and a one year high of $129.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.01. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, January 19th that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Paychex 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.