PAYC vs ADP vs ZM Stock Comparison

Paycom Software, Automatic Data Processing and Zoom Communications Prices as of Nov 5, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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PAYC Paycom Software, Inc.
$249.99 +12.4% 1M +36.1% 1Y
Market cap
$11.26B
P/E
21.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.19B
Div. yield
0.61%
HR Software Technology
3 wins
ZM Zoom Communications, Inc.
$88.82 -5.7% 1M +6.3% 1Y
Market cap
$25.96B
P/E
8.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.99B
Div. yield
–
Communications Platforms Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Automatic Data Processing leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Automatic Data Processing 5, Zoom Communications 4, Paycom Software 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPAYCADPZMLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $11.26B $121.50B $25.96B ADP
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 21.7x 27.3x 8.0x ZM
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 21.3x 23.7x 13.8x ZM
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.5% +6.5% +5.0% PAYC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 23.3% 20.3% 65.2% ZM
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 35.6% -47.2% — PAYC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.6x -0.4x — ADP
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.61% 2.21% — ADP
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +36.1% +18.3% +6.3% PAYC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -13.1%/yr +6.0%/yr -19.6%/yr ADP
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 47.4% 28.0% 44.9% ADP
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 63/100 37/100 77/100 ZM

Percentile Scorecard

PAYCADPZM

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

AxisPAYCADPZM
Valuation 52 #49 of 100 26 #74 of 100 71 #9 of 29
Growth 56 #44 of 99 29 #71 of 99 63 #11 of 28
Profitability 98 #3 of 96 54 #45 of 96 85 #5 of 27
Financial Health 43 #64 of 112 33 #75 of 112 97 #2 of 31
Shareholder Returns 67 #23 of 67 44 #38 of 67 71 #7 of 22
Overall 63 37 77
  • PAYC ranked among 113 companies in Business Applications
  • ADP ranked among 113 companies in Business Applications
  • ZM ranked among 31 companies in Workplace Software

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodPAYCADPZMSPY
1 month +12.4%+17.1%-5.7% -5.9%
3 months +15.6%+12.3%-12.3% -4.6%
6 months +80.6%+43.5%-18.0% +0.2%
Year to date +56.9%+19.4%+2.9% +7.5%
1 year +36.1%+18.3%+6.3% +8.2%
3 years +55.4%+39.3%+43.7% +68.3%
3 years, per year +15.8%+11.7%+12.8% +19.0%
5 years -50.4%+33.8%-66.4% +56.5%
5 years, per year -13.1%+6.0%-19.6% +9.4%
10 years +481.6%+244.8%— +251.5%
10 years, per year +19.3%+13.2%— +13.4%

Risk

MeasurePAYCADPZMSPY
Volatility, 1Y 47.4%28.0%44.9% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 43.4%25.9%43.0% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.22-0.111.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.760.650.14 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -77.8%-42.2%-79.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.0%-0.3%-20.6% -5.9%
52-week high $274.60$307.94$111.88 $779.14
52-week low $113.59$188.79$72.72 $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.

MultiplePAYCADPZM
P/E now vs peer median 21.7xmedian 24.7x 27.3xmedian 24.7x 8.0xmedian 34.8x
P/S now vs peer median 5.1xmedian 2.8x 5.5xmedian 2.8x 5.2xmedian 2.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.6xmedian 16.5x -26.5xmedian 16.5x 11.9xmedian 11.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 17.1xmedian 15.3x 23.2xmedian 15.3x 13.5xmedian 13.6x
P/B now vs peer median 15.9xmedian 2.7x 23.9xmedian 2.7x 2.3xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 0.86median 0.77 2.75median 0.77 0.04median 0.73

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 monthsPAYCADPZM
Revenue $2.19B $22.26B $4.99B
Gross profit $1.84B $10.37B $3.86B
Operating income $731.60M -$6.45B $1.19B
Net income $510.10M $4.53B $3.26B
Free cash flow $659.10M $5.25B $1.93B
R&D $223.30M $1.03B $903.44M
EPS (diluted) $11.46 $11.22 $10.86
Cash & equivalents $193.90M $3.28B $931.99M
Total debt $750.00M $4.97B –
Shares (diluted) 44.53M 403.30M 299.75M
Enterprise value $10.34B $108.30B -$4.77B

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
MetricPAYCADPZM
P/E 21.7x 27.3x 8.0x
P/FCF 17.1x 23.2x 13.5x
P/Operating cash flow 13.9x 22.3x 13.0x
P/S 5.1x 5.5x 5.2x
P/B 15.9x 23.9x 2.3x
P/Tangible book 16.6x 35.4x 2.3x
EV/EBITDA 12.6x -26.5x 11.9x
EV/EBIT 16.1x -19.1x 15.8x
EV/Revenue 5.4x 5.5x 3.7x
EV/FCF 17.9x 23.5x 9.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.6x 22.6x 9.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.86 2.75 0.04

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPAYCADPZM
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.5% 6.5% 5.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.4% 6.7% 3.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 10.8% 8.0% 6.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 10.4% 8.0% 4.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) 31.0% -2.7% 22.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 17.5% -3.8% 112.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 12.6% 9.4% 174.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 14.6% 9.0% 184.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 42.6% 10.3% 181.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 25.1% 9.9% 186.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 25.9% 14.6% 4.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 19.1% 12.6% 16.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 67.1% 14.0% 4.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 29.6% 13.2% 19.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPAYCADPZM
Gross margin 84.0% 46.6% 77.3%
EBITDA margin 42.6% -20.9% 31.4%
Operating margin 33.4% -29.0% 23.7%
Pretax margin 32.7% 26.4% 83.8%
Net margin 23.3% 20.3% 65.2%
FCF margin 30.1% 23.6% 38.6%
Operating cash flow margin 37.0% 24.5% 40.1%
Return on equity 79.8% 81.4% 30.6%
Return on assets 9.0% 7.1% 25.3%
Return on invested capital 35.6% -47.2% –
Return on capital employed 48.7% -54.0% 11.0%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.4x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x 1.2x 0.6x
Stock comp / revenue 3.6% 1.1% 14.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPAYCADPZM
Debt / assets 12.3% 7.8% –
Debt / equity 1.1x 1.0x –
Net debt / EBITDA 0.6x -0.4x –
Debt / FCF 1.1x 0.9x –
Liabilities / assets 88.4% 92.0% 16.8%
Equity / assets 11.6% 8.0% 83.2%
Interest coverage 27.2x -13.7x –
Current ratio 1.1x 1.0x 3.8x
Quick ratio 0.1x 0.1x 3.7x
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.1x 3.4x
Altman Z-score 2.66 1.90 8.80

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPAYCADPZM
Dividend yield 0.6% 2.2% –
Net buyback yield 13.2% 2.0% 5.4%
Shareholder yield 13.8% 4.3% 5.4%
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.

ConsensusPAYCADPZM
Forward P/E 21.3xFY2026 23.7xFY2027 13.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $11.74FY2026 $12.97FY2027 $6.45FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +27.1%FY2026 +16.6%FY2027 +9.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +14.6% +7.0% +2.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.08BFY2026 $22.20BFY2027 $4.76BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.5%FY2026 +1.2%FY2027 -2.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +11.2% +18.1% +8.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPAYCADPZM
Held by institutions 90.3% 88.1% 76.2%
Institutions holding 596 2,294 865
Change in shares held, QoQ -8.5% +4.4% +2.9%
Institutions buying 295 1,087 479
Institutions selling 222 875 280
Buyers to sellers 1.33 1.24 1.71

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.

PAYCADPZM
PAYC 1.00 0.66 0.37
ADP 0.66 1.00 0.34
ZM 0.37 0.34 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PAYC, ADP and ZM?

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) is the largest by market capitalisation: Paycom Software (PAYC) $11.26B, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) $121.50B, Zoom Communications (ZM) $25.96B.

Which stock is cheaper, PAYC, ADP and ZM?

Zoom Communications (ZM) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Paycom Software (PAYC) 21.7x, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 27.3x, Zoom Communications (ZM) 8.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Zoom Communications (ZM) is cheapest (Paycom Software (PAYC) 21.3x, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 23.7x, Zoom Communications (ZM) 13.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Paycom Software (PAYC) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Paycom Software (PAYC) +9.5%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) +6.5%, Zoom Communications (ZM) +5.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Zoom Communications (ZM) has the highest net margin (Paycom Software (PAYC) 23.3%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 20.3%, Zoom Communications (ZM) 65.2%). On return on invested capital, Paycom Software (PAYC) leads (Paycom Software (PAYC) 35.6%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) -47.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Paycom Software (PAYC) returned the most: Paycom Software (PAYC) +36.1%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) +18.3%, Zoom Communications (ZM) +6.3%. Over five years, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) compounded fastest (Paycom Software (PAYC) -13.1%/yr, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) +6.0%/yr, Zoom Communications (ZM) -19.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) has the highest dividend yield: Paycom Software (PAYC) 0.61%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 2.21%. Zoom Communications (ZM) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) has been the steadiest (Paycom Software (PAYC) 47.4%, Automatic Data Processing (ADP) 28.0%, Zoom Communications (ZM) 44.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, PAYC, ADP and ZM?

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 5. 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.