MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB Sells 1,788 Shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB decreased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 61,837 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,788 shares during the quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB’s holdings in Paychex were worth $8,671,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 42.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Paychex by 152.6% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 293 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paychex in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Paychex by 805.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in Paychex during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on PAYX shares. TD Cowen upped their price target on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $148.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.23.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ PAYX opened at $146.29 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.72 and a 1-year high of $150.71. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.67 billion, a PE ratio of 30.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.53%.

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.