Alps Advisors Inc. Buys 41,114 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Alps Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 240,564 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,114 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $30,494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in PAYX. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the third quarter worth $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 83.8% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 215 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. MMA Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 40.6% in the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 263 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAYX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased 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. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, December 1st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Paychex to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $123.94.

Paychex Price Performance

Paychex stock opened at $98.53 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.90 and a 52-week high of $161.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34 and a beta of 0.90. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.07.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. The company 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.96%.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex 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.