Contrasting StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE) & International Money Express (NASDAQ:IMXI)

StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE) and International Money Express (NASDAQ:IMXI) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares StoneCo and International Money Express’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
StoneCo	22.92%	22.19%	4.10%
International Money Express	3.35%	17.01%	5.44%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for StoneCo and International Money Express, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
StoneCo	0	6	4	0	2.40
International Money Express	0	2	0	0	2.00

StoneCo presently has a consensus price target of $14.30, indicating a potential upside of 51.80%. Given StoneCo’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe StoneCo is more favorable than International Money Express.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares StoneCo and International Money Express”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
StoneCo	$2.53 billion	0.93	$425.73 million	$2.48	3.80
International Money Express	$607.78 million	0.57	$32.67 million	$0.62	18.53

StoneCo has higher revenue and earnings than International Money Express. StoneCo is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than International Money Express, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.2% of StoneCo shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 86.7% of International Money Express shares are held by institutional investors. 11.3% of StoneCo shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.1% of International Money Express shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

StoneCo has a beta of 1.68, meaning that its share price is 68% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, International Money Express has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

StoneCo beats International Money Express on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About StoneCo

StoneCo Ltd. provides financial technology and software solutions to merchants and integrated partners to conduct electronic commerce across in-store, online, and mobile channels in Brazil. It distributes its solutions, principally through proprietary Stone Hubs, which offer hyper-local sales and services; and sells solutions to brick-and-mortar and digital merchants through sales team. The company served small-and-medium-sized businesses; and marketplaces, e-commerce platforms, and integrated software vendors. StoneCo Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in George Town, the Cayman Islands.

About International Money Express

International Money Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an omnichannel money remittance services company in the United States, Latin America, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia. The company offers remittance services, which include a suite of ancillary financial processing solutions and payment services; and online payment options, pre-paid debit cards, and direct deposit payroll cards. It provides services through sending and paying agents and company-operated stores, as well as through online and Internet-enabled mobile devices. International Money Express, Inc. is headquartered in Miami, Florida.