Wrapping up Q3 earnings, we look at the numbers and key takeaways for the finance and HR software stocks, including Bill.com (NYSE: BILL) and its peers.

Organizations are constantly looking to improve organizational efficiencies, whether it is financial planning, tax management or payroll. Finance and HR software benefit from the SaaS-ification of businesses, large and small, who much prefer the flexibility of cloud-based, web-browser delivered software paid for on a subscription basis than the hassle and expense of purchasing and managing on-premise enterprise software.

The 14 finance and HR software stocks we track reported a mixed Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.4% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 1% below.

Luckily, finance and HR software stocks have performed well with share prices up 10.2% on average since the latest earnings results.

Best Q3: Bill.com (NYSE: BILL)

Started by René Lacerte in 2006 after selling his previous payroll and accounting software company PayCycle to Intuit, Bill.com (NYSE: BILL) is a software as a service platform that aims to make payments and billing processes easier for small and medium-sized businesses.

Bill.com reported revenues of $358.5 million, up 17.5% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 3.3%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 33.5% since reporting and currently trades at $87.90.

We think Bill.com is a good business, but is it a buy today? Read our full report here, it’s free.

Flywire (NASDAQ: FLYW)

Originally created to process international tuition payments for universities, Flywire (NASDAQ: FLYW) is a cross border payments processor and software platform focusing on complex, high-value transactions like education, healthcare and B2B payments.

Flywire reported revenues of $156.8 million, up 27.2% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.1%. The business had a very strong quarter with full-year EBITDA guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations.

Flywire delivered the biggest analyst estimates beat, fastest revenue growth, and highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 9.2% since reporting. It currently trades at $19.98.

Is now the time to buy Flywire? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q3: Asure (NASDAQ: ASUR)

Created from the merger of two small workforce management companies in 2007, Asure (NASDAQ: ASUR) provides cloud based payroll and HR software for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Asure reported revenues of $29.3 million, flat year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 6.5%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted revenue guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations.

Asure delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates, slowest revenue growth, and weakest full-year guidance update in the group. The stock is flat since the results and currently trades at $9.96.

Read our full analysis of Asure’s results here.

Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY)

Founded by payroll software veteran Steve Sarowitz in 1997, Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY) is a provider of payroll and HR software for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Paylocity reported revenues of $363 million, up 14.3% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 1.9%. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and revenue guidance for next quarter topping analysts’ expectations.

The stock is up 12.3% since reporting and currently trades at $200.40.

Read our full, actionable report on Paylocity here, it’s free.

Global Business Travel (NYSE: GBTG)

Holding close ties to American Express, Global Business Travel (NYSE: GBTG) is a comprehensive travel and expense management services provider to corporations worldwide.

Global Business Travel reported revenues of $597 million, up 4.6% year on year. This number missed analysts’ expectations by 2.7%. Overall, it was a slower quarter as it also logged full-year revenue guidance slightly missing analysts’ expectations.

The stock is up 17.5% since reporting and currently trades at $9.

Read our full, actionable report on Global Business Travel here, it’s free.

Market Update

As a result of the Fed's rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has come down from frothy levels post-pandemic. The general rise in the price of goods and services is trending towards the Fed's 2% goal as of late, which is good news. The higher rates that fought inflation also didn't slow economic activity enough to catalyze a recession. So far, soft landing. This, combined with recent rate cuts (half a percent in September 2024 and a quarter percent in November 2024) have led to strong stock market performance in 2024. The icing on the cake for 2024 returns was Donald Trump's victory in the US Presidential Election in early November, sending major indices to all-time highs in the week following the election. Still, debates around the health of the economy and the impact of potential tariffs and corporate tax cuts remain. Said differently, there's still much uncertainty around 2025.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Hidden Gem Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

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