Zacks Research Equities Analysts Boost Earnings Estimates for Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lifted their Q3 2026 EPS estimates for Paychex in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, March 27th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the business services provider will earn $1.46 per share for the quarter, up from their previous 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 research firms have also issued reports on PAYX. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Paychex from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $123.00 price target (down from $132.00) on shares of Paychex in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.77.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $121.53 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $121.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $119.50. Paychex has a 12 month low of $104.09 and a 12 month high of $129.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.01, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.94.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 13th were paid a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 12th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.11%.

Paychex declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, January 19th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Paychex news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.53, for a total transaction of $1,865,924.93. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 82,690 shares in the company, valued at $9,966,625.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Paychex by 102,768.9% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,537,548 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $524,359,000 after acquiring an additional 4,533,137 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Paychex by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,504,389 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,204,115,000 after purchasing an additional 1,523,520 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Paychex by 337.3% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,544,806 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $178,162,000 after purchasing an additional 1,191,539 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Paychex by 229.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,630,944 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $188,655,000 after buying an additional 1,136,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Paychex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $115,494,000. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

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.