Assay
Financial-condition grades for SEC filers
Company Report · as of Oct 9, 2026
|
| Paychex Inc.PAYX · other | |
|---|---|
| Grade |  Bsecond fifth of 336 graded peers; percentile 23.0, sampling error 2.6 points; lower is stronger |
| Rank | 78 of 336 |
| Profitability | Bpercentile 33.6 |
| Solvency | Cpercentile 42.8 |
| Growth and financing | B/Cpercentile 40.1 |
| Reliability | 0.94 AUCfailure model, filers with over $2.67B assets; 95% interval 0.88 to 0.97; 61 events, 2020 to 2025 |
| Peer failure rate | 0.52% a yearItem 1.03 bankruptcies, same asset band, 2012 to 2025 |
| Size band | over $2.67B assetstotal assets $16.2B[1] |
| Standard universe | insiderevenue above $1M and assets above $10M[1-2] |
| Warnings | none active |
| Inputs computable | 13 of 14 |
| Graded from | filings received through Jul 17, 202684 days before the rescan; every figure keyed to the SEC receipt date |
| Last close | $104.422026-10-08; market equity $37.2B; iex feed |
| Price used in grade | None |
| Share price, twelve months to the rescansplit-adjusted close; a lollipop at every rescan carries the letter held then; baseline ticks are SEC receipt dates of the inputs; ranges and dragging scroll the full history | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Percentile at every rescan on file, Jan 21, 2012 to Oct 9, 2026; stronger toward the top. Hover for the date. Open this report as it stood on | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Each date opens the report as it stood on that rescan. |
Business, in the company's words. Opening of Item 1 of the 10-K received Jul 17, 2026; the document on sec.gov.
Unless we state otherwise or the context otherwise requires, the terms “Paychex,” the “Company,” “we,” “our,” and “us” refer to Paychex, Inc., a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. We are an industry-leading human capital management (“HCM”) company providing comprehensive technology and advisory solutions in human resources (“HR”), payroll processing, employee benefits, and insurance. As of May 31, 2026, we served approximately 840,000 total customers across the U.S. and parts of Europe, of which approximately 800,000 are payroll clients.
The Fourteen Inputs [top]
Lower percentile is stronger. Source numbers open the SEC filing; a range that spans filings opens the sources table.
| Input | Percentile, 0 to 100 | Value | Source | Peer median | Percentile | Peers | Period end |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profitability, sleeve percentile 33.6 | |||||||
| Gross profitability | 28.6% | [1-3] | 27.1% | 43.4 | 289 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Return on invested capital | 26.1% | [4-12] | 10.0% | 11.3 | 151 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Accruals ratio | (4.9%) | [1,13-15] | (5.9%) | 56.0 | 506 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Gross margin stability, five years | 1.1 pts | [2-3,16-23] | 2.2 pts | 23.6 | 204 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Solvency, sleeve percentile 42.8 | |||||||
| Twelve-month failure probability | 0.04% | 0.04% | 54.5 | 45 | 2026-08-31 | ||
| Altman Z double-prime | 2.44 | [1,4,8,24-27] | 2.05 | 35.8 | 386 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 1.17x | [4,7,9,28] | 2.52x | 30.1 | 184 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Interest coverage | not computable | 2.18x | |||||
| latest aligned inputs end 2024-05-31; latest annual assets end 2026-05-31 | |||||||
| Current ratio | 1.26x | [24-25] | 1.32x | 50.9 | 506 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Growth and financing, sleeve percentile 40.1 | |||||||
| Revenue growth, three-year compound | 8.7% | [2,16,18,20] | 5.1% | 35.1 | 403 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Free cash flow growth, three-year compound | 14.1% | [14,29-35] | 8.7% | 42.0 | 220 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Reinvestment rate | (20.7%) | [4-6,24-25,28-29,36-37] | 11.9% | 66.1 | 190 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Asset growth, three years | 15.3% | [1,15,38-39] | 4.1% | 20.1 | 438 | 2026-05-31 | |
| Net share issuance, one year | (1.3%) | [40-41] | (0.4%) | 37.2 | 356 | 2026-06-30 | |
Gross profitability. Revenue less cost of goods sold, over total assets.
Accruals ratio. Net income less operating cash flow, over average assets; lower is stronger.
Gross margin stability, five years. Standard deviation of gross margin; lower is stronger.
Twelve-month failure probability. CHS model; lower is stronger.
Net debt to EBITDA. Lower is stronger.
Net share issuance, one year. Split-adjusted; lower is stronger.
Sleeves are equal-weighted; within a sleeve each computable input carries equal weight. Composite -0.246; sampling error 2.6 percentile points on 336 peers.
Among 336 Peers [top]
Composite score of every graded peer, smoothed. Vertical rules are the letter band edges at the 20th, 40th, 60th and 80th percentiles. Small dots are the six largest peers by market equity.
| Rank | Company | Percentile | Letter | Warnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 73 | Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (LYV) Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (LYV) A/Bon the A/B boundary; percentile 21.5 NYSE · Services-Amusement & Recreation Services market equity $40.4B; last close $171.37 No active warnings; 10 of 14 inputs | 21.5 | A/B | |
| 74 | Etsy Inc. (ETSY) Etsy Inc. (ETSY) A/Bon the A/B boundary; percentile 21.8 NYSE · Services-Business Services, NEC market equity $6.9B; last close $75.13 No active warnings; 12 of 14 inputs | 21.8 | A/B | |
| 75 | Tutor Perini Corp. (TPC) Tutor Perini Corp. (TPC) A/Bon the A/B boundary; percentile 22.1 NYSE · General Bldg Contractors - Nonresidential Bldgs market equity $4.4B; last close $84.34 Warnings: fortress balance sheet; 12 of 14 inputs | 22.1 | A/B | fortress balance sheet |
| 76 | Castellum, Inc. (CTM) Castellum, Inc. (CTM) A/Bon the A/B boundary; percentile 22.4 NYSE · Services-Management Consulting Services market equity $58.0M; last close $0.61 No active warnings; 7 of 14 inputs | 22.4 | A/B | |
| 77 | Centrus Energy Corp. (LEU) Centrus Energy Corp. (LEU) Bsecond fifth; percentile 22.7 NYSE · Mining & Quarrying of Nonmetallic Minerals (No Fuels) market equity $1.9B; last close $142.16 Warnings: fortress balance sheet; 11 of 14 inputs | 22.7 | B | fortress balance sheet |
| 78 | Paychex Inc. (PAYX) Paychex Inc. (PAYX) Bsecond fifth; percentile 23.0 Nasdaq · Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management market equity $37.2B; last close $104.42 No active warnings; 13 of 14 inputs | 23.0 | B | |
| 79 | Prog Holdings, Inc. (PRG) Prog Holdings, Inc. (PRG) Bsecond fifth; percentile 23.3 NYSE · Services-Equipment Rental & Leasing, NEC market equity $1.2B; last close $30.95 No active warnings; 7 of 14 inputs | 23.3 | B | |
| 80 | Kirby Corp. (KEX) Kirby Corp. (KEX) Bsecond fifth; percentile 23.6 NYSE · Water Transportation market equity $7.3B; last close $138.09 No active warnings; 10 of 14 inputs | 23.6 | B | |
| 81 | Exponent Inc. (EXPO) Exponent Inc. (EXPO) Bsecond fifth; percentile 23.9 Nasdaq · Services-Management Consulting Services market equity $3.3B; last close $69.77 No active warnings; 7 of 14 inputs | 23.9 | B | |
| 82 | Medpace Holdings, Inc. (MEDP) Medpace Holdings, Inc. (MEDP) Bsecond fifth; percentile 24.2 Nasdaq · Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research market equity $16.8B; last close $603.38 No active warnings; 8 of 14 inputs | 24.2 | B | |
| 83 | Ttec Holdings, Inc. (TTEC) Ttec Holdings, Inc. (TTEC) Bsecond fifth; percentile 24.5 Nasdaq · Services-Help Supply Services market equity $72.0M; last close $1.46 No active warnings; 7 of 14 inputs | 24.5 | B |
| Peer policy | Letter | Percentile | Peers |
|---|---|---|---|
| all graded filers, equal sleeves | A/B | 20.8 | 2204 |
| sector peers, equal sleeves (the grade) | B | 23.0 | 336 |
| same exchange, equal sleeves | B | 24.2 | 1219 |
| sector peers, equal inputs | B | 23.0 | 336 |
Each letter is one fifth of the 336 graded peers, about 67 companies. A boundary letter (A/B, B/C, C/D, D/E) marks a percentile within one sampling error of a band edge.
What the Price Implies [top]
Market measures at the 2026-10-08 close. None enters the grade. Percentile among graded peers with the same measure.
| Measure | Value | Peer median | Percentile | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Twelve-month price change, skipping the latest month | 4.9% | 2.0% | 52 | hotter than 52 of 100 peers |
| Distance from 52-week high | (18.8%) | (26.8%) | 62 | closer to its high than 62 of 100 peers |
| EBIT to enterprise value | 6.1% | 4.4% | 69 | pricier than 31 of 100 peers |
| Free cash flow yield | 6.2% | 4.1% | 66 | pricier than 34 of 100 peers |
| Book value to price | 0.10 | 0.34 | 19 | pricier than 81 of 100 peers |
| Sales to price | 0.17 | 0.70 | 12 | pricier than 88 of 100 peers |
| Composite equity issuance, five years | (17.2%) | (8.8%) | 36 | more equity-funded than 36 of 100 peers |
| Relative strength against the sector, log excess return | (0.10) | (0.13) | 52 | ahead of 52 of 100 peers |
Inputs: market equity $37.2B; EBIT $2.5B; free cash flow $2.3B; book equity $3.7B; sales $6.3B; debt $4.6B; cash $600.9M[42].
Diagnostics [top]
Diagnostics do not feed the grade.
| Piotroski F-score: 6 of 9, period end 2026-05-31 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Return on assets above zero | 10.6% | ✓ pass[13,15] |
| Operating cash flow above zero | $2.6B | ✓ pass[14] |
| Return on assets improved | (5.3 pts) | ✗ fail[13,15,38,43] |
| Operating cash flow exceeds net income | $796.6M | ✓ pass[13-14] |
| Long-term leverage fell | (5.9 pts) | ✓ pass[1,15,38,44-45] |
| Current ratio improved | (2.3 pts) | ✗ fail[24-25,36-37] |
| No new shares issued | (1.3%) | ✓ pass[40-41] |
| Gross margin improved | 1.9 pts | ✓ pass[2-3,16-17] |
| Asset turnover improved | (14.1 pts) | ✗ fail[2,15-16,38] |
| Cash, filings, liquidity | |
|---|---|
| Cash and equivalents | $600.9M[46] |
| Operating cash flow, four quarters | $2.3B[14,46-50] |
| Months of runway | not finite |
| trailing operating cash flow is nonnegative, so runway is not finite | |
| Late filings, two years | 0 |
| NT 10-K or NT 10-Q | |
| Days since last periodic filing | 15 |
| 10-Q received Sep 24, 2026 | |
| Median daily dollar volume | $318.0M |
| 63 sessions | |
| Days since newest grade input | 84 |
Downloads [top]
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Sources [top]
Every citation on this page. Filing opens the SEC index page for that submission; viewer opens the SEC interactive data for the same filing; series opens the SEC XBRL API record for that tag and company.
| # | Concept | XBRL tag | Value | Period end | Received | Form | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | assets | us-gaap:Assets | $16.2B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 2 | revenue | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax | $6.3B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 3 | cost of revenue | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue | $1.7B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 4 | operating income | us-gaap:OperatingIncomeLoss | $2.5B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 5 | pretax income | us-gaap:IncomeLossFromContinuingOperationsBeforeIncomeTaxesExtraordinaryItemsNoncontrollingInterest | $2.3B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 6 | income tax | us-gaap:IncomeTaxExpenseBenefit | $550.8M | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 7 | total debt | us-gaap:LongTermDebt | $4.6B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 8 | book equity | us-gaap:StockholdersEquity | $3.7B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 9 | cash | us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue | $1.1B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 10 | total debt | us-gaap:LongTermDebt | $4.9B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 11 | book equity | us-gaap:StockholdersEquity | $4.1B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 12 | cash | us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue | $1.6B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 13 | net income | us-gaap:NetIncomeLoss | $1.8B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 14 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $2.6B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 15 | assets | us-gaap:Assets | $16.6B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 16 | revenue | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax | $5.4B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 17 | cost of revenue | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue | $1.5B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 18 | revenue | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax | $5.1B | 2024-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 19 | cost of revenue | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue | $1.5B | 2024-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 20 | revenue | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax | $4.9B | 2023-05-31 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 21 | cost of revenue | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue | $1.5B | 2023-05-31 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 22 | revenue | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax | $4.6B | 2022-05-31 | 2024-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 23 | cost of revenue | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue | $1.4B | 2022-05-31 | 2024-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 24 | current assets | us-gaap:AssetsCurrent | $8.6B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 25 | current liabilities | us-gaap:LiabilitiesCurrent | $6.8B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 26 | retained earnings | us-gaap:RetainedEarningsAccumulatedDeficit | $1.8B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 27 | liabilities | us-gaap:Liabilities | $12.4B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 28 | depreciation amortization | us-gaap:DepreciationDepletionAndAmortization | $442.6M | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 29 | capital expenditure | us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment | $234.9M | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 30 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $1.9B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 31 | capital expenditure | us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment | $191.8M | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 32 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $1.9B | 2024-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 33 | capital expenditure | us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment | $161.4M | 2024-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 34 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $1.7B | 2023-05-31 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 35 | capital expenditure | us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment | $143.0M | 2023-05-31 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 36 | current assets | us-gaap:AssetsCurrent | $8.9B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 37 | current liabilities | us-gaap:LiabilitiesCurrent | $7.0B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 38 | assets | us-gaap:Assets | $10.4B | 2024-05-31 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 39 | assets | us-gaap:Assets | $10.5B | 2023-05-31 | 2024-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 40 | shares outstanding | dei:EntityCommonStockSharesOutstanding | 355,682,860 | 2026-06-30 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 41 | shares outstanding | dei:EntityCommonStockSharesOutstanding | 360,243,877 | 2025-06-30 | 2025-07-11 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 42 | shares outstanding | dei:EntityCommonStockSharesOutstanding | 355,980,473 | 2026-08-31 | 2026-09-24 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
| 43 | net income | us-gaap:ProfitLoss | $1.7B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 44 | long term debt | us-gaap:LongTermDebtNoncurrent | $4.6B | 2026-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 45 | long term debt | us-gaap:LongTermDebtNoncurrent | $4.5B | 2025-05-31 | 2026-07-17 | 10-K | filing · viewer · series |
| 46 | cash | us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue | $600.9M | 2026-08-31 | 2026-09-24 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
| 47 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $413.5M | 2026-08-31 | 2026-09-24 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
| 48 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $2.0B | 2026-02-28 | 2026-03-26 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
| 49 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $1.2B | 2025-11-30 | 2025-12-22 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
| 50 | operating cash flow | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | $718.4M | 2025-08-31 | 2026-09-24 | 10-Q | filing · viewer · series |
Limitations [top]
Grade boundary. Percentile 23.0 is 3.0 points from the nearest band edge; sampling error is 2.6 points.
Peer group. Sector assignment from four-digit SIC codes, hand-tuned and published. The grade under three alternative peer policies is tabled above.
Size. Within a sector the letter tracks size. Among graded filers in the smallest asset band, 72% grade E and 0% grade A; in the largest, 13% grade E and 21% grade A. Universe as of Oct 9, 2026.
Failure model. filings 2012-01-01 to 2019-12-31 fit, filings 2020-01-01 to 2025-12-31 test; status post hoc pending confirmation. pre-registered on 2026 filings once their 12-month outcome windows close; supported if the paired per-quintile gain over the pooled model has a lower bound above 0.05.
Input validity. Revenue or total assets at or below $100,000 sets the degenerate-inputs flag. An input whose denominator is at or below $100,000 is left not computable rather than ranked.
Returns. No input on this page has a post-2015 confidence interval on returns that excludes zero. The grade ranks reported financial condition and is not a return forecast.
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