ABC Arbitrage SA Buys 10,726 Shares of Paychex, Inc. $PAYX

ABC Arbitrage SA lifted its position in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,208 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,726 shares during the quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA’s holdings in Paychex were worth $3,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its position in shares of Paychex by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 15,390 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,951,000 after acquiring an additional 3,668 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its stake in Paychex by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 4,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Paychex during the third quarter worth about $646,000. Bryce Point Capital LLC acquired a new position in Paychex during the third quarter worth approximately $405,000. Finally, Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Paychex by 12.2% in the third quarter. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,651 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. 83.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Paychex Stock Up 1.0%

PAYX stock opened at $99.03 on Wednesday. Paychex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.90 and a 52 week high of $161.24. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $35.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.46 and a beta of 0.90.

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

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 28th. Paychex’s payout ratio is 97.96%.

Paychex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PAYX shares. Stephens cut their price target on Paychex from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Paychex from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $133.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $110.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $123.94.

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.