Paychex Stock Gets Price Target Hikes From Morgan Stanley, Citi Post Q3 Earnings — Retail’s Enthusiastic

Shares of Paychex, Inc. (PAYX) traded marginally in the green in Thursday’s pre-market session after Wall Street analysts announced a slew of price target hikes after its quarterly earnings report.

According to TheFly, Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Paychex to $142 from $137 and kept an ‘Equal Weight’ rating on the shares.

The brokerage noted that Paychex shares rallied the back of an in-line fiscal third-quarter (Q3) report and re-affirmed fourth-quarter (Q4) guidance as investors may have expected greater adverse bottom-line impact from slower Professional Employer Organizations (PEO) and Insurance Solutions growth.

Morgan Stanley highlighted that its projections remain "largely unchanged," still excluding Paycor (PYCR), whose acquisition is expected to realize greater synergies than initially stated.

Paychex’s revenue rose 5% year over year (YoY) to $1.509 billion, mostly aligning with the Street’s expectation of $1.508 billion. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) came in at $1.49 compared to an analyst estimate of $1.48.

Segment-wise, Management Solutions revenue rose 5% to $1.1 billion, primarily impacted by continued growth in the number of clients and better price realization.

Revenue from PEO and Insurance Solutions increased 6% to $365.4 million, driven by an increase in the number of average PEO worksite employees and a rise in PEO insurance revenues.

Following the earnings, Citi also raised its price target on the stock to $158 from $145 and kept a ‘Neutral’ rating on the shares.

The brokerage observed that the company’s client retention remains robust, and bookings growth commentary was positive.

Stifel also raised its target to $156 from $141 and kept a ‘Hold’ rating on the shares.

According to the brokerage, Paychex is a stable mid-to-high-single-digit EPS compounder in most markets, particularly after the Paycor deal. Stifel, however, noted that it is "fully priced" at a 73% premium to the equal-weight S&P 500.

Meanwhile, on Stocktwits, retail sentiment flipped into bullish territory (60/100) from bearish a day ago, accompanied by significant retail chatter that touched a year-high mark.

Paychex shares have gained over 8% in 2025 and over 23% in the past 12 months.

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