QRG Capital Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 61,894 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,817 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $8,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Paychex by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,541,306 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,750,472,000 after acquiring an additional 123,268 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in Paychex by 12.8% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 20,878,283 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,563,853,000 after acquiring an additional 2,373,894 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Paychex by 155.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,478,325 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $304,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508,681 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Paychex by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,356,262 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $279,351,000 after purchasing an additional 384,184 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Paychex by 57.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,179,930 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $267,695,000 after purchasing an additional 793,468 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Paychex Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $139.76. 2,101,347 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,781,478. The business's 50-day moving average price is $136.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.99. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.98 and a 12 month high of $144.17. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.31 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 45.97%. The company's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. Analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders 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 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. Paychex's payout ratio is presently 83.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Paychex from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised their price target on Paychex from $125.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company 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 given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $130.77.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of Paychex 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,018,020.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $3,674,284.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,018,020.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert L. Schrader sold 13,015 shares of the business'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 value of $1,852,685.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over 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.

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.