Zacks Research Weighs in on Paychex, Inc.’s Q4 2024 Earnings (NASDAQ:PAYX)

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for Paychex in a report issued on Tuesday, April 16th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the business services provider will post earnings per share of $1.10 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.12. The consensus estimate for Paychex’s current full-year earnings is $4.71 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Paychex’s Q2 2025 earnings at $1.14 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.40 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.21 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.95 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.31 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.25 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.31 EPS.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 2nd. The business services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.14% and a net margin of 31.86%. Paychex’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.29 EPS.

PAYX has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Paychex from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 26th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Paychex in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Paychex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Paychex Price Performance

Shares of PAYX opened at $117.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.40 billion, a PE ratio of 25.66, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. Paychex has a fifty-two week low of $104.09 and a fifty-two week high of $129.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $122.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.14.

Paychex announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, January 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Paychex

In other news, VP Mark Anthony Bottini sold 15,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,625.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 11.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ethos Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Paychex by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 1,952 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Paychex by 0.6% during the third quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 15,425 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,779,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Paychex by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,225 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. grew its stake in shares of Paychex by 2.3% in the third quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 4,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $472,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its position in Paychex by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 1,535 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.