Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) to Post Q1 2025 Earnings of $1.14 Per Share, Zacks Research Forecasts

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Paychex in a research report issued on Friday, July 12th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the business services provider will post earnings per share of $1.14 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.20. The consensus estimate for Paychex’s current full-year earnings is $4.99 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Paychex’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.50 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.20 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.23 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.26 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.30 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $5.58 EPS.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The business services provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. Paychex had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 32.03%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Paychex from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Paychex from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Paychex in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Paychex from $122.00 to $121.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Paychex from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.46.

Paychex Stock Performance

Shares of PAYX stock opened at $124.28 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $121.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.51. Paychex has a 12 month low of $106.27 and a 12 month high of $129.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.00.

Paychex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Paychex’s payout ratio is currently 83.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total transaction of $11,901,732.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 437,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,287,448.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director David J. S. Flaschen sold 19,709 shares of Paychex stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.55, for a total value of $2,454,755.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,383 shares in the company, valued at $670,452.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 101,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.27, for a total transaction of $11,901,732.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 437,345 shares in the company, valued at $51,287,448.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paychex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PAYX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Paychex by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,541,306 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,750,472,000 after purchasing an additional 123,268 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of Paychex by 12.8% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 20,878,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,563,853,000 after buying an additional 2,373,894 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Paychex by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,687,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $320,151,000 after buying an additional 56,793 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd boosted its position in shares of Paychex by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,548,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $303,492,000 after acquiring an additional 623,000 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its stake in Paychex by 155.6% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,478,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $304,338,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508,681 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

About Paychex

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.