Absher Wealth Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

Absher Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 25.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 273,824 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 54,824 shares during the quarter. Paychex makes up 3.6% of Absher Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Absher Wealth Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Paychex worth $30,718,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Paychex by 17.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,765,468 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,787,151,000 after purchasing an additional 5,549,511 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 4,051,413 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $589,319,000 after buying an additional 557,101 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Paychex by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,805,391 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $355,650,000 after acquiring an additional 31,321 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Paychex by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,280,715 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $330,908,000 after acquiring an additional 17,869 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Paychex by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,979,330 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $250,900,000 after acquiring an additional 30,117 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of Paychex stock opened at $90.95 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $92.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.85. The company has a market cap of $32.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. Paychex, Inc. has a one year low of $85.45 and a one year high of $161.24.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current year.

Paychex announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, January 16th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Paychex from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Paychex to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Paychex from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Paychex from $116.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $106.38.

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.