ADP vs PCTY vs WK Stock Comparison

Automatic Data Processing, Paylocity Holding and Workiva Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
PCTY Paylocity Holding Corp
$168.50 +18.1% 1M +12.9% 1Y
Market cap
$8.98B
P/E
33.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.77B
Div. yield
–
HR Software Technology
3 wins
WK Workiva Inc
$83.92 +23.0% 1M -5.7% 1Y
Market cap
$4.54B
P/E
99.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$965.70M
Div. yield
–
Compliance Software Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Automatic Data Processing leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Automatic Data Processing 4, Workiva 4, Paylocity Holding 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionADPPCTYWKLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $113.52B $8.98B $4.54B ADP
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.9x 33.8x 99.3x ADP
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.2x 20.4x 23.4x PCTY
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months — +11.0% +19.7% WK
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 15.2% 4.9% PCTY
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 21.0% 173.8% WK
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — -0.4x -16.7x WK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 2.38% — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +2.1% +12.9% -5.7% PCTY
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.9%/yr -11.2%/yr -10.9%/yr ADP
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 28.6% 42.2% 45.6% ADP
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 43/100 65/100 67/100 WK

Percentile Scorecard

ADPPCTYWK

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisADPPCTYWK
Valuation 38 #63 of 101 55 #46 of 101 50 #51 of 101
Growth 30 #68 of 97 68 #32 of 97 97 #4 of 97
Profitability 75 #24 of 94 87 #13 of 94 68 #31 of 94
Financial Health 20 #87 of 108 56 #48 of 108 67 #36 of 108
Shareholder Returns 52 #31 of 64 59 #27 of 64 54 #30 of 64
Overall 43 65 67
  • ADP ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications
  • PCTY ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications
  • WK ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodADPPCTYWKSPY
1 month +9.0%+18.1%+23.0% +0.9%
3 months +4.4%+16.4%+36.5% +5.9%
6 months +32.7%+56.1%+55.7% +8.5%
Year to date +10.9%+10.5%-2.7% +13.3%
1 year +2.1%+12.9%-5.7% +12.4%
3 years +32.8%-3.4%-10.3% +88.1%
3 years, per year +9.9%-1.1%-3.5% +23.5%
5 years +27.1%-44.8%-43.9% +68.2%
5 years, per year +4.9%-11.2%-10.9% +11.0%
10 years +227.4%+286.6%+419.6% +263.4%
10 years, per year +12.6%+14.5%+17.9% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureADPPCTYWKSPY
Volatility, 1Y 28.6%42.2%45.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 27.5%41.6%44.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.09-0.150.04 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.070.30-0.12 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -42.2%-68.9%-72.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.3%-5.2%-10.1% -0.9%
52-week high $307.94$177.67$93.31 $779.14
52-week low $188.79$95.10$44.31 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleADPPCTYWK
P/E now vs peer median 23.9xmedian 27.6x 33.8xmedian 27.6x 99.3xmedian 27.6x
P/S now vs peer median 4.7xmedian 2.7x 5.1xmedian 2.7x 4.7xmedian 2.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 17.4x 17.6xmedian 17.4x 85.3xmedian 17.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 19.9xmedian 15.8x 18.1xmedian 15.8x 22.6xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 22.3xmedian 3.2x 7.3xmedian 3.2x -46.8xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median —median 0.84 1.32median 0.84 2.91median 0.84

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsADPPCTYWK
Revenue – $1.77B $965.70M
Gross profit – $1.23B $774.58M
Operating income – $385.99M $31.45M
Net income $4.53B $269.74M $47.04M
Free cash flow – $497.10M $200.52M
R&D $1.03B $221.39M $216.63M
EPS (diluted) – $4.92 $0.84
Cash & equivalents $3.28B $271.92M $252.48M
Total debt – $81.25M $71.21M
Shares (diluted) 403.30M 54.77M 56.06M
Enterprise value $113.52B $8.08B $1.11B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricADPPCTYWK
P/E 23.9x 33.8x 99.3x
P/FCF 19.9x 18.1x 22.6x
P/Operating cash flow 20.8x 16.8x 22.5x
P/S 4.7x 5.1x 4.7x
P/B 22.3x 7.3x -46.8x
P/Tangible book 33.0x 7.9x -38.8x
EV/EBITDA – 17.6x 85.3x
EV/EBIT – 22.8x 120.7x
EV/Revenue – 5.0x 3.9x
EV/FCF – 17.7x 18.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 20.8x 16.5x 18.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) – 1.32 2.91

Growth

14 metrics
MetricADPPCTYWK
Revenue growth (1Y) – 11.0% 19.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – 14.7% 18.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 11.7% 25.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 14.9% 21.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) – 27.0% 138.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 35.5% 31.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.4% 18.8% 170.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 24.2% 34.4%
EPS growth (1Y) – 22.6% 170.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) – 25.6% 34.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 14.6% 27.5% 90.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 12.6% 23.6% 79.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 22.7% 94.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 24.0% 84.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricADPPCTYWK
Gross margin – 69.2% 80.2%
EBITDA margin – 28.1% 4.6%
Operating margin – 21.8% 3.3%
Pretax margin – 21.9% 5.4%
Net margin – 15.2% 4.9%
FCF margin – 28.1% 20.8%
Operating cash flow margin – 30.1% 20.9%
Return on equity 81.4% 22.5% –
Return on assets 7.1% 5.2% 3.4%
Return on invested capital – 21.0% 173.8%
Return on capital employed – 22.1% 4.6%
Asset turnover – 0.3x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 2.0x 4.3x
Stock comp / revenue – 7.8% 12.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricADPPCTYWK
Debt / assets – 1.7% 5.2%
Debt / equity – 0.1x -0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA – -0.4x -16.7x
Debt / FCF – 0.2x 0.4x
Liabilities / assets 92.0% 75.0% 107.1%
Equity / assets 8.0% 25.0% -7.1%
Interest coverage – – 2.5x
Current ratio 1.0x 1.1x 1.5x
Quick ratio – 0.1x 1.3x
Cash ratio – 0.1x 1.1x
Altman Z-score – 2.50 2.21

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricADPPCTYWK
Dividend yield 2.4% – –
Net buyback yield – 4.3% 3.9%
Shareholder yield 2.4% 4.3% 3.9%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusADPPCTYWK
Forward P/E 22.2xFY2027 20.4xFY2027 23.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.87FY2027 $8.25FY2027 $3.59FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +15.7%FY2027 -0.7%FY2027 +101.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +6.8% +13.7% +17.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $22.14BFY2027 $1.94BFY2027 $1.01BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.9%FY2027 +9.6%FY2027 +14.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +18.1% -1.6% +25.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersADPPCTYWK
Held by institutions 88.1% 85.3% 97.3%
Institutions holding 2,291 466 305
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.4% +2.3% +1.4%
Institutions buying 1,085 273 184
Institutions selling 874 154 86
Buyers to sellers 1.24 1.77 2.14

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ADPPCTYWK
ADP 1.00 0.78 0.60
PCTY 0.78 1.00 0.62
WK 0.60 0.62 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ADP, PCTY and WK?

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) is the largest by market capitalisation: Automatic Data Processing (ADP) $113.52B, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) $8.98B, Workiva (WK) $4.54B.

Which stock is cheaper, ADP, PCTY and WK?

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 23.9x, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 33.8x, Workiva (WK) 99.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) is cheapest (Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 22.2x, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 20.4x, Workiva (WK) 23.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Workiva (WK) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Paylocity Holding (PCTY) +11.0%, Workiva (WK) +19.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Paylocity Holding (PCTY) has the highest net margin (Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 15.2%, Workiva (WK) 4.9%). On return on invested capital, Workiva (WK) leads (Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 21.0%, Workiva (WK) 173.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Paylocity Holding (PCTY) returned the most: Automatic Data Processing (ADP) +2.1%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) +12.9%, Workiva (WK) -5.7%. Over five years, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) compounded fastest (Automatic Data Processing (ADP) +4.9%/yr, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) -11.2%/yr, Workiva (WK) -10.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 2.38%. Paylocity Holding (PCTY) and Workiva (WK) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) has been the steadiest (Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 28.6%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 42.2%, Workiva (WK) 45.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ADP, PCTY and WK?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.