Avestar Capital LLC Acquires New Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Avestar Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 1,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Paychex by 286.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC lifted 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. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Paychex in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. American National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 166.7% during the 2nd quarter. American National Bank now owns 288 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 42.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total transaction of $3,674,284.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 64.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,480.70. The trade was a 42.84 % decrease in their position. 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. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $131.62.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $145.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $52.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.07, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.99. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.72 and a 12 month high of $150.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $141.12 and its 200 day moving average is $130.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Paychex’s payout ratio is presently 83.58%.

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.