Rochester Business Journal

Paychex Inc. generated revenue of $551.5 million for its fiscal fourth quarter, a year in which the company set a record for total annual revenue.

Though the mark failed to meet the $557.7 million analysts expected, it was still enough to lead Paychex to $2.2 billion in total sales for the year.

The company reported results Wednesday for the three months ended May 31. During the quarter, net income increased 4 percent to $123.3 million, and diluted earnings per share increased 3 percent to 34 cents a share, meeting estimates from analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

A year ago the company earned $118.9 million in the same quarter, or 33 cents a share on revenue of $522.7 million.

For fiscal 2012 the company reported a 7 percent increase in its total revenue. Net income and diluted earnings per share each increased 5 percent to $548 million and $1.51 per share, respectively.

Martin Mucci, Paychex president and CEO, said the year saw many positive signs for the company after difficult years during the recession. After declining for the previous three years, the company’s client base was flat in 2012 when compared with the previous year end. Checks per payroll rose steadily throughout the year; payroll client retention also reached near-record levels, Mucci noted.

The introduction of new technological advancements pushed the company forward, Mucci noted.

"Our operations execution excelled as we achieved our highest client satisfaction scores in our history, and our progress in technology innovation continued as we introduced our latest mobility offering to clients with our smartphone application," he said.

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