Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) to Post Q3 2026 Earnings of $1.46 Per Share, Zacks Research Forecasts

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX - Free Report) - Equities researchers at Zacks Research increased their Q3 2026 earnings per share estimates for Paychex in a research report issued on Wednesday, March 27th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the business services provider will post earnings of $1.46 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $1.45. The consensus estimate for Paychex's current full-year earnings is $4.72 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Paychex's FY2026 earnings at $5.38 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on PAYX. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Paychex in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Paychex from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $123.00 price objective (down from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a report on Friday, December 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $122.77.

Paychex Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of PAYX stock traded up $1.27 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $122.80. 1,616,753 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,677,974. The firm has a market cap of $44.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.94. Paychex has a fifty-two week low of $104.09 and a fifty-two week high of $129.70. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 13th were issued a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 12th. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Paychex's payout ratio is 79.11%.

Paychex announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Friday, January 19th that permits the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to purchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 82,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 11.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Paychex

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PAYX. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Paychex during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Paychex in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Paychex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. West Tower Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Paychex by 112.8% during the 4th quarter. West Tower Group LLC now owns 232 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Paychex by 91.5% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. 83.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Paychex Company Profile

Paychex, Inc provides integrated human capital management solutions for human resources (HR), payroll, benefits, 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.