Automatic Data Processing vs Paychex
Automatic Data Processing reported revenue of $21.9 billion in fiscal 2026, 3.4 times Paychex's $6.5 billion in fiscal 2026. Automatic Data Processing's revenue grew 6.7% in its latest year, and Paychex's grew 16.9%. Free cash flow was $5.2 billion at Automatic Data Processing and $2.3 billion at Paychex. Their fiscal years end in different months (June 30 and May 31), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| Automatic Data Processing | Paychex | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2026, Jun 30, 2026 | FY2026, May 31, 2026 |
| Revenue | $21.9B | $6.5B |
| Revenue growth | 6.7% | 16.9% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 7.9% | 9.9% |
| Gross margin | 46.4% | 74.3% |
| Operating margin | — | 38.5% |
| Net margin | 20.1% | 27.0% |
| Free cash flow | $5.2B | $2.3B |
| Free cash flow margin | 23.9% | 35.6% |
| Return on capital | 68.8% | 26.2% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 0.1x | 1.2x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $4.7B | $2.2B |
| Change in diluted share count | −1.3% | −0.6% |
| Last close | $301.12 | $115.70 |
| P/E at the last close | 27.5× | 22.9× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | bought $745,695, sold $13.8 million | bought $197,260, sold $4.6 million |
| Piotroski F-score | 9 of 9 | 6 of 9 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
Automatic Data ProcessingPaychex
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
Automatic Data ProcessingPaychex
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
Automatic Data ProcessingPaychex
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the Automatic Data Processing and Paychex pages.