Strategic Financial Concepts LLC Purchases New Shares in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 27,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,872,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Mutual Advisors LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Paychex by 5.6% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $186,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 4,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $575,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Paychex by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 2,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Price Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $146.74 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $143.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.15. The stock has a market cap of $52.84 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $114.72 and a one year high of $151.72.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. Paychex’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on PAYX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 20th. 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, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.23.

Paychex Company 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.