Paychex Plans Buyback

Rochester, N.Y.-based payroll processor Paychex(PAYX Quote) on late Thursday announced a $1 billion share buyback program and boosted its regular quarterly dividend.

The share buyback is the company's first, Paychex said. The 43% dividend increase to 30 cents per share will be paid Aug. 15 to shareholders of record on Aug. 1, it said.

"The dividend increase, combined with the stock repurchase program, reflects the board's confidence in the ability of Paychex to continue generating superior cash returns for our shareholders," President and CEO Jonathan J. Judge said in a written statement. "We don't believe there's any better investment than ourselves."

Shares were gaining $1.56, or 3.8%, in after-hours trading to $43.