Valued with a market capitalization of $42 billion, Paychex, Inc. (PAYX) provides human capital management (HCM) solutions, including payroll, employee benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small and medium-sized businesses. The Rochester, New York-based company is scheduled to announce its fiscal second quarter 2026 results before the market opens on Friday, December 19.
Ahead of this event, analysts expect this HCM solutions provider to post earnings of $1.24 per share, up 8.8% from $1.14 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has surpassed final Wall Street estimates in each of the last four quarters. In Q1, PAYX EPS of $1.22 beat forecast by a cent
For the current fiscal year, which ends in May 2026, analysts expect PAYX to post earnings of $5.47 per share, up 9.8% from $4.98 per share in fiscal 2025. Additionally, its EPS is expected to grow 7.1% year-over-year to $5.86 in fiscal 2027.
PAYX stock has fallen 14.3% over the past 52 weeks, considerably lagging the 11.1% return of the S&P 500 Index ($SPX) and the 22% gain of the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) over the same time period.
Despite reporting strong results, PAYX shares fell 1.4% on September 30 after the release of its first-quarter results. The company’s overall revenue increased 16.8% year over year to $1.5 billion and was in line with analyst estimates. Meanwhile, its adjusted EPS improved 5.2% from the same period last year to $1.22, beating consensus expectations of $1.21. PAYX also raised its adjusted EPS growth outlook for fiscal 2026, and now expects it to increase in the range of 9% to 11%.
Wall Street analysts are cautious on PAYX stock, with an overall rating of “Hold.” Among the 17 analysts covering the stock, 14 recommend “Hold” and three suggest “Strong Sell.” The average price target for PAYX is $129.36, indicating a potential upside of 11.9% from current levels.
On the date of publication, Neharika Jain had no (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article are for informational purposes only. This article was originally published on Barchart.com