Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Sold by Achmea Investment Management B.V.

Achmea Investment Management B.V. reduced its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 124,818 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 8,717 shares during the period. Achmea Investment Management B.V.'s holdings in Paychex were worth $17,502,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PAYX. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $1,241,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in Paychex by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 23,820 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,340,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Essential Planning LLC. acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $2,066,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 4th quarter worth $84,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Paychex by 122.1% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 64,413 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,032,000 after acquiring an additional 35,407 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of PAYX traded down $1.45 on Thursday, hitting $143.56. 1,976,446 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,787,853. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.22, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.98. The stock's 50 day moving average is $146.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.98. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.72 and a 1 year high of $158.37.

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Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on PAYX shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price target 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $133.23.

Paychex Company 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.