Alps Advisors Inc. Buys 35,591 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Alps Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 14.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 276,155 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,591 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Paychex were worth $30,979,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. 44 Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,645 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $381,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,686 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,509,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust boosted its position in Paychex by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,834 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $654,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Moment Partners LLC boosted its position in Paychex by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Moment Partners LLC now owns 6,911 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $876,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $99.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $93.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.07. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.45 and a 1 year high of $154.90.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.Paychex’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $1.19 per share. This is a positive change from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $123.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $106.63.

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.