Earnings results often indicate what direction a company will take in the months ahead. With Q4 behind us, let’s have a look at BlackLine (NASDAQ: BL) 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 12 finance and hr software stocks we track reported a strong Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 3.2% on average since the latest earnings results.

BlackLine (NASDAQ: BL)

Born from the vision to eliminate tedious manual spreadsheet work for accountants, BlackLine (NASDAQ: BL) provides cloud-based software that automates and streamlines financial close, intercompany accounting, and invoice-to-cash processes for accounting departments.

BlackLine reported revenues of $183.2 million, up 8.1% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, and overall, it was a satisfactory quarter for the company with full-year EPS guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations but EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

“Our fourth-quarter performance, highlighted by record bookings, provides encouraging validation of the strategic transformation we initiated over two years ago,” said Owen Ryan, CEO of BlackLine.

BlackLine delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth of the whole group. The company lost 30 customers and ended up with a total of 4,394. Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 16.8% since reporting and currently trades at $36.90.

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

Best Q4: Flywire (NASDAQ: FLYW)

Initially created to solve the challenges of international student tuition payments, Flywire (NASDAQ: FLYW) provides specialized payment processing and software solutions that help educational institutions, healthcare systems, travel companies, and businesses manage complex payments.

Flywire reported revenues of $152.7 million, up 35.4% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 5.9%. The business had an exceptional quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Flywire delivered the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 16.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $13.11.

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

Weakest Q4: Paycom (NYSE: PAYC)

Pioneering the concept of employees doing their own payroll with its "Beti" technology, Paycom (NYSE: PAYC) provides cloud-based human capital management software that helps businesses manage the entire employment lifecycle from recruitment to retirement.

Paycom reported revenues of $544.3 million, up 10.2% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and full-year guidance of slowing revenue growth.

Interestingly, the stock is up 7.8% since the results and currently trades at $128.00.

Read our full analysis of Paycom’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 $4.65 billion, up 17.4% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2.5%. More broadly, it was a mixed quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Intuit had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is up 10.5% since reporting and currently trades at $436.

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

Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY)

Operating in a field where companies traditionally juggled multiple disconnected systems, Paylocity (NASDAQ: PCTY) provides cloud-based human capital management and payroll software solutions that help businesses manage their workforce and HR processes.

Paylocity reported revenues of $416.1 million, up 10.4% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 1.9%. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also produced a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and full-year EBITDA guidance slightly topping analysts’ expectations.

The stock is down 10.4% since reporting and currently trades at $113.83.

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

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