PAYX vs SPY: Correlation
Paychex (PAYX) and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) show a moderate relationship: their 3-year correlation of weekly returns is 0.32.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are PAYX and SPY?
Across a 3-year window, the weekly returns of PAYX and SPY correlate at 0.32, moderate. The past 12 months show a weaker link (0.09) than the 3-year average (0.32). Stretching to 5 years gives 0.56, with an annualized covariance of 98.5 %².
Among the 37 assets we track against PAYX, SPY ranks #25 by 3-year correlation. Their recent paths diverged sharply: over the last 12 months SPY outperformed by 25.4 percentage points (-4.8% for PAYX against +20.6% for SPY). The relationship is regime-dependent: the rolling one-year correlation swung between 0.10 and 0.80 over the past three years, so this pair behaves very differently depending on the market environment.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
PAYX vs SPY: side by side
| PAYX (Paychex) | SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | -4.8% | +20.6% |
| 5-year return | +29.0% | +82.4% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 21.3% | 14.5% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.47 | 1.00 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -45.0% | -18.8% |
| Market cap | $45.0B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 25.5 | – |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 1.01% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.09% |
| Assets under management | – | $795.3B |
| Sector / category | Industrials | ETF · US Large Cap |
SPY is a Large Blend fund from State Street Investment Management: $795.3B under management, 504 holdings, a 0.09% expense ratio, a 1.01% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | PAYX | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -13.2% | -18.2% |
| 2023 | +6.2% | +26.2% |
| 2024 | +21.3% | +24.9% |
| 2025 | -17.5% | +17.7% |
| 2026 | +16.6% | +13.7% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Fund exposure
PAYX represents 0.06% of SPY's portfolio, so part of any move in SPY is PAYX itself, and the correlation between them is partly mechanical.
Are PAYX and SPY good diversifiers for each other?
A fair diversifier. At 0.32, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
FAQ
What is the correlation between PAYX and SPY?
The PAYX/SPY correlation stands at 0.32 on a 3-year window (1 year: 0.09, 5 years: 0.56), computed from weekly returns as of 2026-08-27.
Is SPY a good diversifier for PAYX?
A fair diversifier. At 0.32, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
What does a correlation of 0.32 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.32 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
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Related comparisons
Hubs: PAYX correlations · SPY correlations
