Looking back on finance and hr software stocks’ Q2 earnings, we examine this quarter’s best and worst performers, including BILL (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 13 finance and hr software stocks we track reported a mixed Q2. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 1% below.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 8.5% on average since the latest earnings results.

BILL (NYSE: BILL)

Transforming the messy back-office financial operations that plague small business owners, BILL (NYSE: BILL) provides a cloud-based platform that automates accounts payable, accounts receivable, and expense management for small and midsize businesses.

BILL reported revenues of $383.3 million, up 11.5% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2%. Despite the top-line beat, it was still a slower quarter for the company with full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations and EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations.

Interestingly, the stock is up 24.3% since reporting and currently trades at $51.85.

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

Best Q2: Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ)

Powering the cards behind innovative fintech services like Block's Cash App, Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ) provides a cloud-based platform that allows businesses to create customized payment card programs and process card transactions.

Marqeta reported revenues of $150.4 million, up 20.1% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 6.9%. The business had a very strong quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ total payment volume estimates.

Marqeta delivered the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 3.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $5.90.

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

Weakest Q2: Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX)

Once known as the go-to service for small business payroll needs, Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX) provides payroll processing, HR services, employee benefits administration, and insurance solutions to small and medium-sized businesses.

Paychex reported revenues of $1.43 billion, up 10.2% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 1.1%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 11.7% since the results and currently trades at $134.49.

Read our full analysis of Paychex’s results here.

Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU)

Originally named after its founding product "Intuitive for the first-time user," Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU) provides financial management software and services including TurboTax, QuickBooks, Credit Karma, and Mailchimp to help consumers and small businesses manage their finances.

Intuit reported revenues of $3.83 billion, up 20.3% year on year. This result beat analysts’ expectations by 2.1%. Taking a step back, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts’ billings estimates but full-year guidance of slowing revenue growth.

The stock is down 5.7% since reporting and currently trades at $658.

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

Workiva (NYSE: WK)

Nicknamed "the Excel killer" by some finance professionals for its ability to eliminate spreadsheet chaos, Workiva (NYSE: WK) provides a cloud-based platform that enables organizations to streamline financial reporting, ESG, and compliance processes with connected data and automation.

Workiva reported revenues of $215.2 million, up 21.2% year on year. This print surpassed analysts’ expectations by 3%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter as it also recorded a solid beat of analysts’ billings estimates and EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations.

The company added 162 enterprise customers paying more than $100,000 annually to reach a total of 2,241. The stock is up 21.7% since reporting and currently trades at $77.70.

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

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump’s presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape.

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