PAYC vs PCTY vs WDAY Stock Comparison

Paycom Software, Paylocity Holding and Workday 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
$10.68B
P/E
20.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.19B
Div. yield
–
HR Software Technology
4 wins
PCTY Paylocity Holding Corp
$169.38 +15.9% 1M +16.4% 1Y
Market cap
$9.54B
P/E
35.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.77B
Div. yield
–
HR Software Technology
2 wins
WDAY Workday, Inc.
$200.17 +7.3% 1M -13.8% 1Y
Market cap
$48.22B
P/E
38.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.16B
Div. yield
–
ERP Software Technology
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Workday leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Workday 5, Paycom Software 4, Paylocity Holding 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPAYCPCTYWDAYLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $10.68B $9.54B $48.22B WDAY
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 20.9x 35.4x 38.5x PAYC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 21.3x 20.5x 17.5x WDAY
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.5% +11.0% +13.3% WDAY
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 23.3% 15.2% 12.3% PAYC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 35.6% 21.0% 11.0% PAYC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.6x -0.4x -0.2x PCTY
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +36.1% +16.4% -13.8% PAYC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -13.1%/yr -9.6%/yr -7.1%/yr WDAY
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 47.4% 41.7% 53.5% PCTY
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 63/100 63/100 74/100 WDAY

Percentile Scorecard

PAYCPCTYWDAY

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

AxisPAYCPCTYWDAY
Valuation 52 #49 of 100 50 #51 of 100 53 #48 of 100
Growth 56 #44 of 99 67 #33 of 99 88 #13 of 99
Profitability 98 #3 of 96 84 #16 of 96 81 #19 of 96
Financial Health 43 #64 of 112 59 #47 of 112 60 #46 of 112
Shareholder Returns 67 #23 of 67 55 #31 of 67 89 #8 of 67
Overall 63 63 74
  • PAYC ranked among 113 companies in Business Applications
  • PCTY ranked among 113 companies in Business Applications
  • WDAY ranked among 113 companies in Business Applications

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodPAYCPCTYWDAYSPY
1 month +12.4%+15.9%+7.3% -5.9%
3 months +15.6%+11.8%+17.6% -4.6%
6 months +80.6%+55.2%+52.9% +0.2%
Year to date +56.9%+11.1%-6.8% +7.5%
1 year +36.1%+16.4%-13.8% +8.2%
3 years +55.4%+19.4%-8.3% +68.3%
3 years, per year +15.8%+6.1%-2.9% +19.0%
5 years -50.4%-39.5%-31.0% +56.5%
5 years, per year -13.1%-9.6%-7.1% +9.4%
10 years +481.6%+369.8%+141.8% +251.5%
10 years, per year +19.3%+16.7%+9.2% +13.4%

Risk

MeasurePAYCPCTYWDAYSPY
Volatility, 1Y 47.4%41.7%53.5% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 43.4%40.9%50.6% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.22-0.140.23 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.760.39-0.26 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -77.8%-65.8%-63.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.0%-4.7%-14.3% -5.9%
52-week high $274.60$177.67$233.69 $779.14
52-week low $113.59$95.10$112.50 $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.

MultiplePAYCPCTYWDAY
P/E now vs peer median 21.7xmedian 24.7x 34.0xmedian 24.7x 39.2xmedian 24.7x
P/S now vs peer median 5.1xmedian 2.8x 5.1xmedian 2.8x 4.8xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.6xmedian 16.5x 17.7xmedian 16.5x 27.1xmedian 16.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 17.1xmedian 15.3x 18.2xmedian 15.3x 17.0xmedian 15.3x
P/B now vs peer median 15.9xmedian 2.7x 7.4xmedian 2.7x 7.5xmedian 2.7x
PEG now vs peer median 0.86median 0.77 1.33median 0.77 0.29median 0.77

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 monthsPAYCPCTYWDAY
Revenue $2.19B $1.77B $10.16B
Gross profit $1.84B $1.23B $7.70B
Operating income $731.60M $385.99M $1.08B
Net income $510.10M $269.74M $1.25B
Free cash flow $659.10M $497.10M $2.84B
R&D $223.30M $221.39M $2.81B
EPS (diluted) $11.46 $4.92 $5.08
Cash & equivalents $193.90M $271.92M $661.00M
Total debt $750.00M $81.25M $2.99B
Shares (diluted) 44.53M 54.77M 246.31M
Enterprise value $9.76B $8.64B $28.18B

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
MetricPAYCPCTYWDAY
P/E 21.7x 34.0x 39.2x
P/FCF 17.1x 18.2x 17.0x
P/Operating cash flow 13.9x 16.9x 15.7x
P/S 5.1x 5.1x 4.8x
P/B 15.9x 7.4x 7.5x
P/Tangible book 16.6x 7.9x 8.3x
EV/EBITDA 12.6x 17.7x 27.1x
EV/EBIT 16.1x 22.9x 44.2x
EV/Revenue 5.4x 5.0x 4.7x
EV/FCF 17.9x 17.8x 16.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.6x 16.6x 15.5x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.86 1.33 0.29

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPAYCPCTYWDAY
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.5% 11.0% 13.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.4% 14.7% 14.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 10.8% 11.7% 13.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 10.4% 14.9% 15.7%
Operating income growth (1Y) 31.0% 27.0% 105.7%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 17.5% 35.5% 134.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 12.6% 18.8% 114.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 14.6% 24.2% 130.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 42.6% 22.6% 135.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 25.1% 25.6% 135.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 25.9% 27.5% 18.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 19.1% 23.6% 19.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 67.1% 22.7% 18.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 29.6% 24.0% 22.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPAYCPCTYWDAY
Gross margin 84.0% 69.2% 75.8%
EBITDA margin 42.6% 28.1% 17.4%
Operating margin 33.4% 21.8% 10.7%
Pretax margin 32.7% 21.9% 12.6%
Net margin 23.3% 15.2% 12.3%
FCF margin 30.1% 28.1% 28.0%
Operating cash flow margin 37.0% 30.1% 30.3%
Return on equity 79.8% 22.5% 19.0%
Return on assets 9.0% 5.2% 7.8%
Return on invested capital 35.6% 21.0% 11.0%
Return on capital employed 48.7% 22.1% 11.5%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.3x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x 2.0x 2.5x
Stock comp / revenue 3.6% 7.8% 16.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPAYCPCTYWDAY
Debt / assets 12.3% 1.7% 18.8%
Debt / equity 1.1x 0.1x 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.6x -0.4x -0.2x
Debt / FCF 1.1x 0.2x 1.1x
Liabilities / assets 88.4% 75.0% 59.3%
Equity / assets 11.6% 25.0% 40.7%
Interest coverage 27.2x – –
Current ratio 1.1x 1.1x 0.9x
Quick ratio 0.1x 0.1x 0.9x
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.1x 0.5x
Altman Z-score 2.66 2.51 3.93

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPAYCPCTYWDAY
Dividend yield 0.6% – –
Net buyback yield 13.2% 4.3% 10.7%
Shareholder yield 13.8% 4.3% 10.7%
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.

ConsensusPAYCPCTYWDAY
Forward P/E 21.3xFY2026 20.5xFY2027 17.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $11.74FY2026 $8.25FY2027 $11.45FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +27.1%FY2026 -0.7%FY2027 +24.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +14.6% +13.7% +22.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.08BFY2026 $1.94BFY2027 $11.18BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.5%FY2026 +9.6%FY2027 +17.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +11.2% -1.6% +8.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPAYCPCTYWDAY
Held by institutions 90.3% 85.4% 81.9%
Institutions holding 596 468 912
Change in shares held, QoQ -8.5% +2.3% +5.3%
Institutions buying 295 274 488
Institutions selling 222 155 324
Buyers to sellers 1.33 1.77 1.51

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.

PAYCPCTYWDAY
PAYC 1.00 0.73 0.64
PCTY 0.73 1.00 0.71
WDAY 0.64 0.71 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PAYC, PCTY and WDAY?

Workday (WDAY) is the largest by market capitalisation: Paycom Software (PAYC) $10.68B, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) $9.54B, Workday (WDAY) $48.22B.

Which stock is cheaper, PAYC, PCTY and WDAY?

Paycom Software (PAYC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Paycom Software (PAYC) 20.9x, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 35.4x, Workday (WDAY) 38.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Workday (WDAY) is cheapest (Paycom Software (PAYC) 21.3x, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 20.5x, Workday (WDAY) 17.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Workday (WDAY) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Paycom Software (PAYC) +9.5%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) +11.0%, Workday (WDAY) +13.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Paycom Software (PAYC) has the highest net margin (Paycom Software (PAYC) 23.3%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 15.2%, Workday (WDAY) 12.3%). On return on invested capital, Paycom Software (PAYC) leads (Paycom Software (PAYC) 35.6%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 21.0%, Workday (WDAY) 11.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Paycom Software (PAYC) returned the most: Paycom Software (PAYC) +36.1%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) +16.4%, Workday (WDAY) -13.8%. Over five years, Workday (WDAY) compounded fastest (Paycom Software (PAYC) -13.1%/yr, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) -9.6%/yr, Workday (WDAY) -7.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) has been the steadiest (Paycom Software (PAYC) 47.4%, Paylocity Holding (PCTY) 41.7%, Workday (WDAY) 53.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, PAYC, PCTY and WDAY?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Workday (WDAY) 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.