Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) Shares Bought by Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,347 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,082 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank's holdings in Paychex were worth $9,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sentry Investment Management LLC raised its position in Paychex by 10.0% in the third quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 1,536 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 105.2% in the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 714 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. purchased a new stake in Paychex during the third quarter worth about $201,000. PDS Planning Inc acquired a new position in Paychex during the third quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Paychex by 6.6% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 61,894 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $8,306,000 after buying an additional 3,817 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.47% of the company's stock.

Paychex Stock Up 6.3 %

PAYX traded up $8.83 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $148.59. 3,444,472 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,789,215. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $110.82 and a fifty-two week high of $149.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market cap of $53.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.68, a PEG ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.99. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $137.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $127.93.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. Paychex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PAYX shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Paychex from $130.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Paychex from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Paychex from $122.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. 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.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $130.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the company'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 sale, the vice president now owns 14,515 shares in the company, valued at $2,018,020.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Paychex news, VP Michael E. Gioja sold 26,428 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.03, for a total transaction of $3,674,284.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,018,020.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,471,480.70. The trade was 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 worth $7,577,231. Insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

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.