MML Investors Services LLC Has $45.88 Million Stock Holdings in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

MML Investors Services LLC lessened its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 327,187 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,893 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC owned about 0.09% of Paychex worth $45,878,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Paychex by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,521,025 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,419,878,000 after purchasing an additional 174,817 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Paychex by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 26,905,031 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,772,544,000 after buying an additional 166,155 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Paychex by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,044,631 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,408,458,000 after purchasing an additional 519,761 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,541,034 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,339,463,000 after purchasing an additional 126,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Paychex by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,104,626 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $575,551,000 after purchasing an additional 208,130 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX traded down $1.00 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $143.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,394,887 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,916,577. The company has a market cap of $51.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.15, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.88. Paychex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.40 and a 12 month high of $158.37. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $147.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $144.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. Paychex had a net margin of 32.02% and a return on equity of 45.28%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.38 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on PAYX. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Paychex from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $145.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Cfra Research raised Paychex to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $141.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total transaction of $544,762.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 78,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,709,408.75. This trade represents a 4.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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.