Ieq Capital LLC Lowers Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Ieq Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 53.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,812 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 14,769 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Paychex in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Avion Wealth lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 469.8% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the third quarter worth about $36,000. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Down 1.2 %

PAYX stock opened at $148.51 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $144.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.81. The company has a market capitalization of $53.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.72 and a 52 week high of $151.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced 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 business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.28% and a net margin of 32.02%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PAYX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays upped their price target on Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two equities 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.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.23.

Paychex 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.