PAYX vs. WM: Paychex vs. Waste Management Stock Comparison

July 23, 2026

How do Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM) 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

Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM) both fall under the Commercial & Professional Services industry group, but PAYX is classified in Professional Services while WM is classified in Commercial Services & Supplies.

Company profile comparison for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Profile Item	PAYX	WM
Name	Paychex Inc.	Waste Management, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Commercial & Professional Services	Commercial & Professional Services
GICS Industry	Professional Services	Commercial Services & Supplies
GICS Sub-Industry	Human Resource & Employment Services	Environmental & Facilities Services
Market Capitalization	39.82 billion USD	93.64 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	August 26, 1983	June 22, 1988
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

PAYX

GSPC

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM), 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 Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Total Return (1Y)	-18.91%	5.16%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	0.05%	12.29%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	3.16%	11.72%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

PAYX

GSPC

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM), 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 Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	26.79%	20.18%
Beta (5Y)	0.82	0.43
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-44.95%	-18.14%
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.34M	2.17M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

PAYX and WM 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 Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.86	0.06
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-1.19	0.08

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Waste Management (WM) earns 29.94% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Paychex (PAYX) has no ROE this period.

PAYX

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

29.94%

Max: 53.04%
WM: 29.94%
Q3: 25.65%
Median: 13.99%
Q1: 2.99%
Min: -28.46%

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

Net Margin (TTM)

Paychex (PAYX) at 26.63% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Waste Management (WM) at 10.99%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

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%

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

10.99%

Max: 26.63%
Q3: 11.56%
WM: 10.99%
Median: 6.26%
Q1: 1.30%
Min: -13.15%

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their net margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Paychex (PAYX) at 38.33% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Waste Management (WM) at 17.52%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

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%

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

17.52%

Max: 38.33%
Q3: 17.67%
WM: 17.52%
Median: 9.37%
Q1: 3.13%
Min: -4.52%

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their operating margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
ROE (TTM)	--	29.94%
ROA (TTM)	--	6.60%
Net Margin (TTM)	26.63%	10.99%
Operating Margin (TTM)	38.33%	17.52%
Gross Margin (TTM)	67.20%	40.61%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Paychex (PAYX) at 16.88% and Waste Management (WM) at 14.24% sit in the top peer quartile for revenue growth, so each is growing its top line faster than typical industry peers.

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Paychex (PAYX) at 6.77% and Waste Management (WM) at -1.62% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Revenue Growth (YoY)	16.88%	14.24%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	9.15%	8.56%
EPS Growth (YoY)	6.77%	-1.62%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.38%	7.52%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Paychex (PAYX) at 1.15 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Waste Management (WM) at 0.93 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for WM.

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.93

Max: 3.17
Q3: 2.01
Median: 1.48
Q1: 1.13
WM: 0.93
Min: 0.45

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their current ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Paychex (PAYX) at 1.24 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while Waste Management (WM) at 2.28 uses more debt funding than most peers.

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.28

Max: 2.61
WM: 2.28
Q3: 1.39
Median: 0.94
Q1: 0.40
Min: 0.01

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.15	0.93
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.24	2.28
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.17	2.97

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 Waste Management (WM) reports a yield of 1.43%, ranking against industry peers normally.

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%

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.43%

Max: 3.77%
Q3: 1.82%
WM: 1.43%
Median: 0.44%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Paychex (PAYX) at 90.59% and Waste Management (WM) at 49.49% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

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%

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

49.49%

Max: 90.59%
WM: 49.49%
Q3: 36.56%
Median: 16.11%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	1.43%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	90.59%	49.49%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Paychex (PAYX) at 23.57 and Waste Management (WM) at 34.60 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

34.60

Max: 67.06
Q3: 38.84
WM: 34.60
Median: 23.07
Q1: 16.03
Min: 4.96

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both look expensive on sales: Waste Management (WM) at 3.68 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Paychex (PAYX) at 10.04 prices even higher, above its industry range.

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

3.68

Max: 7.33
WM: 3.68
Q3: 3.42
Median: 1.37
Q1: 0.74
Min: 0.13

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Paychex (PAYX) at 10.66 and Waste Management (WM) at 9.36 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

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

WM

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

9.36

Max: 10.74
WM: 9.36
Q3: 5.92
Median: 3.25
Q1: 1.95
Min: -2.86

Paychex (PAYX) vs. Waste Management (WM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Paychex (PAYX) and Waste Management (WM)
Metric	PAYX	WM
P/E Ratio (TTM)	23.57	34.60
P/S Ratio (TTM)	10.04	3.68
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	10.66	9.36
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	--	2.28%