Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) Stock Falls 5.4% – Here’s What Happened

Posted by Francis Steltz on Oct 27th, 2026

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX – Get Free Report)’s share price traded down 5.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company traded as low as $109.67 and last traded at $109.4970. Approximately 1,713,907 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 3,449,825 shares. The stock had previously closed at $115.70.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Paychex in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Paychex from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Paychex from $118.00 to $113.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $127.59.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Paychex

Paychex Trading Down 5.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.64. The stock has a market cap of $38.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.86.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 52.78% and a net margin of 27.35%. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.63 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Paychex has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.896-6.006 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Monday, October 26th will be paid a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 26th. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is 94.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, Director Joseph Velli sold 7,839 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total transaction of $844,103.52. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 81,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,800,148. This trade represents a 8.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Paychex

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. XXEC Inc. bought a new position in shares of Paychex in the second quarter valued at about $1,123,016,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,728,970,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth about $434,061,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth about $207,184,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Paychex during the 2nd quarter worth about $193,555,000. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paychex Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Paychex, Inc provides payroll, human resources and employee-benefits solutions to small and medium-sized businesses. Its offerings include payroll processing, tax administration, time and attendance management, recruiting, onboarding, human resources administration, compliance support and employee benefits services.

The company also provides retirement-plan services, insurance solutions and professional employer organization services. Through its software and outsourced services, Paychex helps employers manage workforce administration, employee data and regulatory requirements.

Paychex was founded in 1971 by B.