ADP vs. PAYX: Automatic Data Processing vs. Paychex Stock Comparison

July 23, 2026

How do Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX) are both classified in the Human Resource & Employment Services sub-industry within the broader Professional Services industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Profile Item	ADP	PAYX
Name	Automatic Data Processing Inc.	Paychex Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Commercial & Professional Services	Commercial & Professional Services
GICS Industry	Professional Services	Professional Services
GICS Sub-Industry	Human Resource & Employment Services	Human Resource & Employment Services
Market Capitalization	98.42 billion USD	39.82 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	August 26, 1983
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

ADP

PAYX

GSPC

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Total Return (1Y)	-15.90%	-18.91%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	3.59%	0.05%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	6.09%	3.16%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

ADP

PAYX

GSPC

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	26.02%	26.79%
Beta (5Y)	0.82	0.82
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-40.78%	-44.95%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.86M	3.34M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

ADP and PAYX are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.77	-0.86
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-1.10	-1.19

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Automatic Data Processing (ADP) earns 71.21% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Paychex (PAYX) has no ROE this period.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

71.21%

ADP: 71.21%
Max: 53.04%
Q3: 25.65%
Median: 13.99%
Q1: 2.99%
Min: -28.46%

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

Max: 53.04%
Q3: 25.65%
Median: 13.99%
Q1: 2.99%
Min: -28.46%
PAYX: --

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): PAYX does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; ADP is benchmarked against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 20.12% and Paychex (PAYX) at 26.63% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

20.12%

Max: 26.63%
ADP: 20.12%
Q3: 11.56%
Median: 6.26%
Q1: 1.30%
Min: -13.15%

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

26.63%

PAYX: 26.63%
Max: 26.63%
Q3: 11.56%
Median: 6.26%
Q1: 1.30%
Min: -13.15%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their net margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 30.18% and Paychex (PAYX) at 38.33% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

30.18%

Max: 38.33%
ADP: 30.18%
Q3: 17.67%
Median: 9.37%
Q1: 3.13%
Min: -4.52%

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

38.33%

PAYX: 38.33%
Max: 38.33%
Q3: 17.67%
Median: 9.37%
Q1: 3.13%
Min: -4.52%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their operating margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
ROE (TTM)	71.21%	--
ROA (TTM)	5.95%	--
Net Margin (TTM)	20.12%	26.63%
Operating Margin (TTM)	30.18%	38.33%
Gross Margin (TTM)	48.50%	67.20%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Paychex (PAYX) at 16.88% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 7.07% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for PAYX.

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 9.67% and Paychex (PAYX) at 6.77% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Revenue Growth (YoY)	7.07%	16.88%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	7.61%	9.15%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.67%	6.77%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	12.55%	4.38%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Paychex (PAYX) at 1.15 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 1.04 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for ADP.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.04

Max: 3.17
Q3: 2.01
Median: 1.48
Q1: 1.13
ADP: 1.04
Min: 0.45

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.15

Max: 3.17
Q3: 2.01
Median: 1.48
PAYX: 1.15
Q1: 1.13
Min: 0.45

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their current ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 0.69 and Paychex (PAYX) at 1.24 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.69

Max: 2.61
Q3: 1.39
Median: 0.94
ADP: 0.69
Q1: 0.40
Min: 0.01

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.24

Max: 2.61
Q3: 1.39
PAYX: 1.24
Median: 0.94
Q1: 0.40
Min: 0.01

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.04	1.15
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.69	1.24
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.18	2.17

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Paychex (PAYX) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reports a yield of 2.54%, ranking against industry peers normally.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.54%

Max: 3.77%
ADP: 2.54%
Q3: 1.82%
Median: 0.44%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 3.77%
Q3: 1.82%
Median: 0.44%
PAYX: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 60.45% and Paychex (PAYX) at 90.59% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

60.45%

Max: 90.59%
ADP: 60.45%
Q3: 36.56%
Median: 16.11%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

90.59%

PAYX: 90.59%
Max: 90.59%
Q3: 36.56%
Median: 16.11%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.54%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	60.45%	90.59%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 23.81 and Paychex (PAYX) at 23.57 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

23.81

Max: 67.06
Q3: 38.84
ADP: 23.81
Median: 23.07
Q1: 16.03
Min: 4.96

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

23.57

Max: 67.06
Q3: 38.84
PAYX: 23.57
Median: 23.07
Q1: 16.03
Min: 4.96

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both look expensive on sales: Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 4.56 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Paychex (PAYX) at 10.04 prices even higher, above its industry range.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

4.56

Max: 7.33
ADP: 4.56
Q3: 3.42
Median: 1.37
Q1: 0.74
Min: 0.13

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

10.04

PAYX: 10.04
Max: 7.33
Q3: 3.42
Median: 1.37
Q1: 0.74
Min: 0.13

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Paychex (PAYX) at 10.66 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 15.53 prices even higher, above its industry range.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

15.53

ADP: 15.53
Max: 10.74
Q3: 5.92
Median: 3.25
Q1: 1.95
Min: -2.86

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

10.66

Max: 10.74
PAYX: 10.66
Q3: 5.92
Median: 3.25
Q1: 1.95
Min: -2.86

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Paychex (PAYX): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Paychex (PAYX)
Metric	ADP	PAYX
P/E Ratio (TTM)	23.81	23.57
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.56	10.04
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	15.53	10.66
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	4.83%	--