Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Meets Estimates

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.38 billion. Paychex had a net margin of 31.99% and a return on equity of 45.30%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. Paychex updated its FY 2026 guidance to EPS.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of Paychex stock traded down $11.77 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $140.48. 3,976,664 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,933,225. Paychex has a 1 year low of $115.40 and a 1 year high of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $50.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a fifty day moving average of $151.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Paychex Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.08%. This is a positive change from Paychex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph M. Velli sold 3,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.25, for a total transaction of $544,762.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 78,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,709,408.75. The trade was a 4.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in Paychex during the first quarter worth about $3,333,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Finally, Bison Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAYX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $165.00 price target on Paychex and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Paychex from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Paychex in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group increased their target price on Paychex from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Paychex to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.36.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.