Paysign (NASDAQ:PAYS) versus Western Union (NYSE:WU) Head-To-Head Comparison

Western Union (NYSE:WU) and Paysign (NASDAQ:PAYS) are both business services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Western Union and Paysign”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Western Union	$4.10 billion	0.71	$934.20 million	$2.29	4.00
Paysign	$68.54 million	4.13	$3.82 million	$0.12	43.29

Western Union has higher revenue and earnings than Paysign. Western Union is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Paysign, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Western Union and Paysign’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Western Union	18.80%	60.85%	6.97%
Paysign	9.90%	19.32%	3.64%

Volatility and Risk

Western Union has a beta of 0.61, suggesting that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Paysign has a beta of 0.93, suggesting that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

91.8% of Western Union shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.9% of Paysign shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Western Union shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 22.4% of Paysign shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Western Union and Paysign, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Western Union	4	10	0	0	1.71
Paysign	0	1	4	0	2.80

Western Union currently has a consensus price target of $8.55, indicating a potential downside of 6.56%. Paysign has a consensus price target of $8.56, indicating a potential upside of 64.82%. Given Paysign’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Paysign is more favorable than Western Union.

About Western Union

The Western Union Company provides money movement and payment services worldwide. The company operates through Consumer Money Transfer and Consumer Services segments. The Consumer Money Transfer segment facilitates money transfers for international cross-border and intra-country transfers, primarily through a network of retail agent locations, as well as through websites and mobile devices. The Consumer Services segments offers bill payment services, which facilitate payments for consumers, businesses, and other organizations, as well as money order services, retail foreign exchange services, prepaid cards, lending partnerships, and digital wallets. The company was founded in 1851 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

About Paysign

Paysign, Inc. provides prepaid card programs, comprehensive patient affordability offerings, digital banking services, and integrated payment processing services for businesses, consumers, and government institutions. Its product offerings include solutions for corporate rewards, prepaid gift cards, general purpose reloadable debit cards, employee incentives, consumer rebates, donor compensation, clinical trials, healthcare reimbursement payments and pharmaceutical payment assistance, and demand deposit accounts accessible with a debit card. The company markets its prepaid card solutions under the Paysign brand. Its primary market focus is on companies and municipalities that require a streamlined payment solution for rewards, rebates, payment assistance, and other payments to their customers, employees, agents, and others. The company was formerly known as 3PEA International, Inc. and changed its name to Paysign, Inc. in April 2019. Paysign, Inc. was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Henderson, Nevada.