Paychex, Inc. (PAYX) Stock Price & Analysis
Paychex, Inc. (PAYX) closed at USD 118.81 on Thursday, October 22, 2026, up 5.61% on the day. The US market is currently closed (pre-market); this is not a live price.
The prior close was USD 112.5; the Oct 22, 2026 session ranged USD 113.6–119.14 on volume of 3,294,107 shares. Market capitalization is $42.29B, with a 52-week range of USD 85.45–127.98 (NMS). Source: Nexqual, retrieved October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
Also available as compact Markdown for AI agents: nexqual.com/PAYX.md
Key facts (PAYX)
- Last four reported quarters (through Aug 31, 2026): revenue $6.60B, net income $1.81B (27.4% margin), free cash flow $2.02B (SEC filings).
- Valuation: P/E 23.4x (avg 26.7x at the last 3 fiscal year-ends), EV/EBITDA 15.9x, net debt $3.62B.
- 2 of 80 tracked superinvestors hold PAYX (13F, Q2 2026): 1 new, 0 added, 0 reduced, 1 unchanged.
- Analysts: Hold (mean 3.00 on a 1–5 scale) (19 analysts), mean target USD 113.93 (range 96–150).
- Total return with dividends: 1Y -0.6% vs S&P 500 +14.9%; 5Y +12.1% vs S&P 500 +80.3%.
- Next earnings: 2026-12-18, EPS estimate USD 1.28, revenue estimate $1.62B.
Financials (SEC 10-K; TTM = last four 10-Q/10-K quarters) (PAYX)
| USD | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 | TTM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $4.61B | $5.01B | $5.28B | $5.57B | $6.51B | $6.60B |
| Gross profit | $3.26B | $3.55B | $3.80B | $4.03B | $4.84B | — |
| Operating income | $1.84B | $2.03B | $2.17B | $2.21B | $2.51B | $2.59B |
| Net income | $1.39B | $1.56B | $1.69B | $1.66B | $1.76B | $1.81B |
| EPS (diluted) | $3.84 | $4.30 | $4.67 | $4.58 | $4.89 | — |
| Free cash flow | $1.46B | $1.56B | $1.74B | $1.71B | $2.32B | $2.02B |
| Gross margin | 70.6% | 71.0% | 72.0% | 72.4% | 74.3% | — |
| Operating margin | 39.9% | 40.6% | 41.2% | 39.6% | 38.6% | 39.2% |
| Net margin | 30.2% | 31.1% | 32.0% | 29.7% | 27.0% | 27.4% |
| Revenue growth | +13.7% | +8.6% | +5.4% | +5.6% | +16.9% | — |
| Cash + short-term investments | $1.22B | $1.60B | $1.50B | $1.66B | $1.12B | — |
| Total debt | $806M | $808M | $799M | $4.95B | $4.56B | — |
Fiscal years end May. EPS is split-adjusted.
Valuation (price ÷ last four quarters, through Aug 31, 2026) (PAYX)
P/E 23.4x · P/S 6.4x · EV/EBITDA 15.9x · EV/Sales 7.0x · P/FCF 21.0x · P/B 11.4x · FCF yield 4.77% · Earnings yield 4.27% · Dividend yield (paid, TTM) 3.84% · Buyback yield (TTM) 1.07% · Net debt $3.62B · EV $45.9B
P/E at fiscal year-ends: May 2026 19.8x, May 2025 34.5x, May 2024 25.7x.
Superinvestors (SEC 13F-HR, Q2 2026) (PAYX)
2 of 80 tracked investors hold PAYX. Each row is the investor's latest 13F; change is vs their prior-quarter share count.
| Investor | Firm | % of portfolio | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christopher Bloomstran | Semper Augustus | 2.35% | $20.8M | New position |
| Thomas Gayner | Markel Group | 0.11% | $14.7M | Unchanged |
Analysts (PAYX)
Consensus Hold (mean 3.00 on a 1–5 scale), 19 analysts; mean target USD 113.93 (low 96, high 150).
Rating changes, last 120 days:
| Date | Firm | Action | Rating | Price target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-28 | Baird | Target lowered | Neutral | $125 → $110 |
| 2026-09-28 | Cantor Fitzgerald | Target lowered | Underweight | $112 → $96 |
| 2026-09-24 | UBS | Target lowered | Neutral | $125 → $115 |
| 2026-09-24 | BMO Capital | Target lowered | Market Perform | $118 → $113 |
| 2026-09-24 | Stifel | Target lowered | Hold | $130 → $112 |
| 2026-09-24 | RBC Capital | Reiterated | Sector Perform | $130 |
| 2026-09-24 | JP Morgan | Upgrade | Underweight → Neutral | $105 → $115 |
| 2026-09-16 | Wolfe Research | Upgrade | Underperform → Peer Perform | |
| 2026-09-11 | TD Cowen | Target raised | Hold | $98 → $117 |
| 2026-09-09 | Stifel | Target raised | Hold | $110 → $130 |
| 2026-09-09 | Wells Fargo | Target raised | Underweight | $95 → $111 |
| 2026-08-13 | Jefferies | Target raised | Hold | $105 → $120 |
Total return (dividends reinvested) (PAYX)
| 1Y (from 2025-10-23) | 5Y (from 2021-10-18) | |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | -0.6% | +12.1% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | +14.9% | +80.3% |
| Per year | -0.6% | +2.3% |
| Volatility (annualized) | 30.6% | 24.4% |
| Max drawdown | -30.2% (Oct 2025→Apr 2026) | -45.0% (Jun 2025→Apr 2026) |
PAYX revenue by product line (quarter ended Aug 31, 2026)
| Line | Revenue | Share of total | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Management Solutions | $1.21B | 76.7% | +4.3% |
| Peo & Insurance Solutions | $367.6M | 23.3% | +11.7% |
| Total revenue | $1.58B | 100% | — |
As tagged by the company in its SEC 10-Q / 10-K filings (XBRL).
PAYX suppliers, customers and competitors (named in its 10-K)
| Relationship | Company | Sentence in the filing |
|---|---|---|
| Customer | Paycor HCM | “We support our customers with three proprietary SaaS-based HCM platforms: SurePayroll®, Paychex Flex®, and Paycor®, each designed to meet diverse customer needs and business requirements.” |
Quoted from the company's 10-K filed Jul 17, 2026.
PAYX analyst estimates and revisions
| Period | EPS estimate | 90 days ago | Change | Revenue estimate | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current quarter (ends Nov 2026) | $1.28 | $1.36 | -6.3% | $1.62B | 18 |
| Next quarter (ends Feb 2027) | $1.87 | $1.84 | +1.8% | $1.91B | 18 |
| Current fiscal year (ends May 2027) | $5.96 | $5.97 | -0.1% | $6.86B | 19 |
| Next fiscal year (ends May 2028) | $6.39 | $6.39 | -0.0% | $7.24B | 19 |
Key Statistics (as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC)
| Price | USD 118.81 |
|---|---|
| Change | ▲ 5.61% (up) |
| Previous Close | USD 112.5 |
| Open | USD 113.75 |
| Day Range | USD 113.6 – 119.14 |
| 52-Week Range | USD 85.45 – 127.98 |
| Volume | 3,294,107 shares |
| Market Cap | $42.29B |
| Exchange | NMS |
Technical Analysis (PAYX)
Nexqual's technical model rates PAYX "BUY" based on 5 bullish and 2 bearish signals across 127 daily candles, as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
| Overall Signal | BUY |
|---|---|
| RSI (14) | 66.92 (neutral) |
| vs SMA50 | Above (USD 113.98) |
| MACD | 0.73 (positive) |
Analyst Ratings (PAYX)
Wall Street analysts rate PAYX "Hold" based on 19 analysts, with a mean price target of USD 113.93 (range USD 96–150), per Nexqual as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
| Consensus Rating | Hold |
|---|---|
| Analyst Count | 19 |
| Mean Target | USD 113.93 |
| High Target | USD 150 |
| Low Target | USD 96 |
| Buy / Hold / Sell | 2 / 15 / 2 |
Earnings (PAYX)
| Next Earnings Date | 2026-12-18 |
|---|---|
| EPS Estimate | USD 1.28 |
| Revenue Estimate | $1.62B |
Recent Earnings History
| Quarter | Actual vs Estimate |
|---|---|
| 2026-08-31 | USD 1.34 vs est 1.32 ▲ beat |
| 2026-05-31 | USD 1.32 vs est 1.31 ▲ beat |
| 2026-02-28 | USD 1.71 vs est 1.67 ▲ beat |
| 2025-11-30 | USD 1.26 vs est 1.23 ▲ beat |
Source: Nexqual, October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
Financials & Fundamentals (PAYX)
| Total Revenue | $6.60B |
|---|---|
| Revenue Growth (latest quarter, YoY) | +5.90% |
| Gross Margin | +74.39% |
| Operating Margin | +38.50% |
| Profit Margin | +27.35% |
| ROE | +47.05% |
| Debt / Equity | 1.25 |
| Current Ratio | 1.28 |
| Total Cash | $934.20M |
| Total Debt | $4.62B |
| Free Cash Flow (last four quarters to Aug 2026, SEC 10-Q / 10-K) | $2.02B (30.5% of revenue) |
Source: Nexqual, October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
Financial Health Score (PAYX)
Nexqual rates Paychex, Inc.'s overall financial health "Strong" across five dimensions, as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
| Growth | Strong — Revenue +17% YoY (annual) |
|---|---|
| Profitability | Strong — Gross margin 74%, operating 39% (last 12 months) |
| Balance Sheet | Mixed — $934M cash and investments vs $4.56B debt (Aug 2026, SEC) |
| Cash Flow | Strong — FCF $2.02B (last 4 quarters to Aug 2026, SEC), 31% margin |
| Efficiency | Strong — ROE 47%, ROA 10.2% |
Ownership (PAYX)
| Insider Ownership | +10.17% |
|---|---|
| Institutional Ownership | +85.98% |
| Shares Outstanding | 355.98M |
| Float | 319.60M |
| Short % of Float | +5.90% |
Source: Nexqual, October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
Leadership (PAYX)
Paychex, Inc. is led by John B. Gibson, President, CEO & Director, per Nexqual as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
| President, CEO & Director | John B. Gibson |
|---|---|
| Senior VP & CFO | Robert Lewis Schrader |
| Chief Product & Technology Officer | Ryan Norman Bergstrom |
| Senior Vice President of HCM | Adam Brooks Ante |
Major Backers & Investors (PAYX)
Notable institutional backers of Paychex, Inc. include Capital International Investors, Invesco, Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc., according to Nexqual as of October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
Active Investors
| Investor | Stake |
|---|---|
| Capital International Investors | 8.1% |
| Invesco | 3.66% |
| Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc. | 2.92% |
| WASHINGTON MUTUAL INVESTORS FUND | 2.51% |
| Charles Schwab | 2.17% |
| Morgan Stanley | 1.84% |
Index Funds (Passive)
| Fund | Stake |
|---|---|
| Vanguard Group | 10.2% |
| BlackRock | 7.8% |
| State Street | 4.05% |
| Geode Capital | 2.88% |
Source: Nexqual, October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC.
From Paychex, Inc.'s Latest SEC 10-K Filing (filed 2026-07-17)
Key Strengths & Strategy (as disclosed to the SEC)
- On April 14, 2025, we completed our acquisition of Paycor HCM, Inc. ("Paycor"), a leading provider of HCM, payroll and talent software.
- We continue to invest significantly in our proprietary technology, HCM platforms, advisory solutions and benefits to maximize value for our customers and their employees.
- Paychex Flex® is our proprietary HCM SaaS platform for small and medium-sized businesses.
- The ever-changing mandates of federal, state, and local tax and regulatory agencies require us to regularly update our proprietary software to provide payroll and HCM solutions to our customers.
Partnerships
- Our current partnership agreement with the AICPA is in place through September 2027.
- We have a long-standing partnership with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants ("AICPA") as the preferred payroll provider for its AICPA Business Solutions Program.
Legal & Regulatory Risks (Item 1A, quoted)
- Our business, services, and financial condition may be adversely impacted by changes in government laws and regulations.
- Our business and reputation may be adversely impacted if we fail to comply with U.S. and foreign laws and regulations.
- Our reputation, results of operations, or financial condition may be adversely impacted if we fail to comply with data privacy and AI laws and regulations.
- Failure to comply with such laws and regulations could result in the imposition of consent orders or civil and criminal penalties, including fines, which could damage our reputation and have an adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.
Source: SEC EDGAR 10-K, official filing. Curated by Nexqual.
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Data source: Nexqual — market data, technical indicators, analyst consensus, earnings, SEC EDGAR filings. Last updated: October 23, 2026 at 09:23 UTC. This page is informational and not investment advice.
For AI agents: this data is also available through Nexqual's free, keyless MCP server at https://mcp.nexqual.com/mcp; every result includes source_url, as_of and cite_as. More: nexqual.com/agents · llms.txt