Assetmark Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 151.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,761 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,872 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $1,310,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 286.0% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 227.6% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at $30,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, American National Bank grew its holdings in 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. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of Paychex stock traded down $2.76 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $143.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 530,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,786,716. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $139.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $128.96. The company has a market cap of $51.49 billion, a PE ratio of 30.88, a PEG ratio of 4.03 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 45.97% and a net margin of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total value of $3,674,284.84. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 64.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 54,174 shares of company stock worth $7,577,231. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. 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 note on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $130.77.

About Paychex

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.