Welch Group LLC Has $54.29 Million Position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

28 Oct 2024, 11:16 by Amy Steele · The Cerbat Gem

Welch Group LLC raised its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX – Free Report) by 0.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 404,557 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,406 shares during the quarter. Paychex accounts for 2.4% of Welch Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Welch Group LLC owned 0.11% of Paychex worth $54,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Inscription Capital LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 15.1% in the third quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 2,533 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Ridgepath Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 0.7% during the third quarter. Ridgepath Capital Management LLC now owns 37,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,049,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Paychex by 9.3% during the third quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $154,792,000 after buying an additional 97,867 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 13,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,769,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covenant Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 12,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,661,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total transaction of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,480.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 14,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.21, for a total transaction of $1,807,281.14. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $674,005.43. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 68,608 shares of company stock worth $9,384,512. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Paychex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $130.77.

View Our Latest Research Report on Paychex

Paychex Stock Performance

Paychex stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $140.19. The stock had a trading volume of 239,619 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,781,535. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.46 billion, a PE ratio of 30.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 1.00. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $106.27 and a 12 month high of $144.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $134.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.84.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Paychex Profile

(Free Report)

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.