Axa S.A. Reduces Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Axa S.A. lessened its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,388 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 87,111 shares during the period. Axa S.A. owned 0.06% of Paychex worth $30,167,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PAYX. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA boosted its holdings in Paychex by 25.5% in the 2nd quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 17,413 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,533,000 after purchasing an additional 3,535 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Paychex by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,066,067 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,046,050,000 after buying an additional 355,294 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Paychex by 3.3% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 91,557 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,318,000 after acquiring an additional 2,952 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Paychex in the second quarter valued at approximately $679,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in Paychex in the second quarter worth approximately $5,382,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $112.74 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $117.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. Paychex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.00 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.57 billion, a PE ratio of 25.33 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The business services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 27.85% and a return on equity of 45.17%. The firm’s revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.16 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.428-5.528 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 97.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Argus decreased their target price on shares of Paychex from $170.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $153.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $121.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $139.00 price objective for the company. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $133.53.

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.