Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $3.23 Million Stake in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 28.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,736 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 12,035 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $3,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Stance Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. MMA Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on PAYX. Guggenheim began coverage on Paychex in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Paychex from $137.00 to $126.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Argus upgraded shares of Paychex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $108.81.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $91.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.63. Paychex, Inc. has a 1-year low of $86.89 and a 1-year high of $161.24. The stock has a market cap of $32.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18 and a beta of 0.88.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. Paychex had a return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 25.84%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th were issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Paychex’s payout ratio is 95.15%.

Paychex declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase 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 repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Paychex 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.