Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Shares Sold by BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. decreased its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 71.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 183,732 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 458,196 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned approximately 0.05% of Paychex worth $23,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PAYX. ABC Arbitrage SA boosted its stake in shares of Paychex by 61.4% in the third quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA now owns 28,208 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,576,000 after acquiring an additional 10,726 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments grew its stake in Paychex by 1,938.2% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 48,143 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,103,000 after acquiring an additional 45,781 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Paychex by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 240,564 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,494,000 after acquiring an additional 41,114 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Paychex by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,384,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $637,820,000 after purchasing an additional 249,550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 8.6% during the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 53,974 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,851,000 after purchasing an additional 4,254 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $92.34 on Friday. Paychex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.70 and a fifty-two week high of $161.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $106.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.94 and a beta of 0.90.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.38% and a net margin of 26.45%.The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.480-5.530 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.96%.

Paychex declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, January 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAYX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Paychex to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Paychex from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wolfe Research cut their price objective on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $123.94.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, founded in 1971 by B. Thomas “Tom” Golisano and headquartered in Rochester, New York, is a provider of payroll, human resources, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses. The company’s core services include payroll processing and tax filing, employee benefits administration, retirement services, and workers’ compensation administration, designed to simplify back-office operations and help clients comply with regulatory and tax requirements.

Paychex offers an integrated technology platform, marketed under the Paychex Flex brand, which delivers cloud-based payroll, HR, time and attendance, and reporting tools.