Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seventeen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.6667.

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $128.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $153.00 to $148.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 5th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 83.8% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 215 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Stance Capital LLC bought a new position in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, MMA Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Trading Down 0.5%

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $106.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $111.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.16. Paychex has a twelve month low of $106.47 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $38.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.18 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.38% and a net margin of 26.45%.The company’s revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Paychex will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, January 16th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be paid a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 97.96%.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.