Paychex, Inc. (PAYX), headquartered in Rochester, New York, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses. With a market cap of $33.6 billion, the company's services range from calculating payroll and filing tax payments to administering retirement plans and workers' compensation. The industry-leading HCM company is expected to announce its fiscal third-quarter earnings for 2026 before the market opens on Wednesday, Mar. 25.
Ahead of the event, analysts expect PAYX to report a profit of $1.68 per share on a diluted basis, up 12.8% from $1.48 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has consistently surpassed Wall Street’s EPS estimates in its last four quarterly reports.
For the full year, analysts expect PAYX to report EPS of $5.49, up 10.2% from $4.98 in fiscal 2025. Its EPS is expected to rise 7.7% year over year to $5.91 in fiscal 2027.
PAYX stock has notably underperformed the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 16.1% gains over the past 52 weeks, with shares down 34.6% during this period. Similarly, it considerably underperformed the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLK) 28% gains over the same time frame.
On Dec. 19, 2025, PAYX shares closed down by 1.7% after reporting its Q2 results. Its adjusted EPS of $1.26 beat Wall Street expectations of $1.24. The company’s revenue was $1.56 billion, topping Wall Street forecasts of $1.55 billion.
Analysts’ consensus opinion on PAYX stock is cautious, with a “Hold” rating overall. Out of 19 analysts covering the stock, 15 give a “Hold,” and four recommend a “Strong Sell.” PAYX’s average analyst price target is $114.93, indicating a potential upside of 22.9% from the current levels.
On the date of publication, Neha Panjwani did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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