Portfolio Design Labs LLC Invests $1.76 Million in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Portfolio Design Labs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 13,143 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,764,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Paychex by 286.0% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in Paychex by 227.6% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted 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 worth $34,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, American National Bank boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 166.7% during the second quarter. American National Bank now owns 288 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total value of $3,674,284.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 64.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 42.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 54,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,577,231. 11.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $140.66 on Wednesday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.72 and a 12 month high of $150.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $139.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.99, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.99.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.97% and a net margin of 31.98%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. Paychex’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.62.

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.