According to Paychex’s January Small Business Employment Watch, the Small Business Jobs Index for firms with fewer than 50 employees rose by 0.04 percentage points to 99.30, consistent with December’s levels and up 0.03 points from the prior quarter. Hourly earnings growth held steady at 2.68%, a rate unchanged since July 2025, while weekly earnings growth slowed modestly to 2.53%. The one-month annualized weekly earnings growth registered 1.62%, marking the first three-month stretch below 2% since late 2020. Regionally, the Midwest led job growth for the 20th consecutive month and the Education and Health Services sector topped all categories at an index reading of 100.57, sustaining nearly five years of continuous expansion.

AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its Paychex holdings by 222.4% during the third quarter, acquiring an additional 8,385 shares to bring its total to 12,156 shares, representing $1.54 million at the end of the period. Other institutional investors, including Brighton Jones LLC and Empirical Finance LLC, also added to their positions, while GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its stake by 40.6%. Paychex reported Q1 fiscal 2026 EPS of $1.26, beating consensus by $0.03 on revenue of $1.56 billion, up 18.3% year-over-year. The company reaffirmed full-year guidance of $5.48–$5.53 EPS. Its board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.08, payable February 27, representing a 97.96% payout ratio, and authorized a $1.0 billion share repurchase program equivalent to 2.5% of outstanding shares. Analysts maintain a consensus rating of “Reduce” with a target EPS-based valuation near $123.94.