Albion Financial Group UT Has $6.98 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Albion Financial Group UT cut its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 737 shares during the quarter. Albion Financial Group UT’s holdings in Paychex were worth $6,984,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Paychex by 152.6% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new position in Paychex in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 805.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ PAYX opened at $145.66 on Wednesday. Paychex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $114.72 and a 12-month high of $150.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market cap of $52.45 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $142.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.83.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 82.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group upped their price objective on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.23.

Paychex Company 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.