Reviewing Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) and Cass Information Systems (NASDAQ:CASS)

Cass Information Systems (NASDAQ:CASS) and Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, earnings, valuation and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

Cass Information Systems has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Global Payments has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

59.1% of Cass Information Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.8% of Global Payments shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.4% of Cass Information Systems shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Global Payments 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.

Dividends

Cass Information Systems pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Global Payments pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Cass Information Systems pays out 74.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Global Payments pays out 18.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Cass Information Systems has raised its dividend for 23 consecutive years. Cass Information Systems is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Cass Information Systems and Global Payments”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cass Information Systems	$190.07 million	3.20	$30.06 million	$1.66	27.03
Global Payments	$10.02 billion	3.02	$986.23 million	$5.31	22.40

Global Payments has higher revenue and earnings than Cass Information Systems. Global Payments is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cass Information Systems, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Cass Information Systems and Global Payments, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cass Information Systems	0	0	1	0	3.00
Global Payments	1	10	15	0	2.54

Cass Information Systems presently has a consensus target price of $45.00, suggesting a potential upside of 0.29%. Global Payments has a consensus target price of $136.57, suggesting a potential upside of 14.80%. Given Global Payments’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Global Payments is more favorable than Cass Information Systems.

Profitability

This table compares Cass Information Systems and Global Payments’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cass Information Systems	11.52%	9.92%	0.99%
Global Payments	13.61%	11.94%	5.45%

Summary

Global Payments beats Cass Information Systems on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cass Information Systems

Cass Information Systems, Inc. provides payment and information processing services to manufacturing, distribution, and retail enterprises in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Information Services and Banking Services. Its services include freight invoice rating, payment processing, auditing, and the generation of accounting and transportation information. The company also processes and pays facility-related invoices, such as electricity, gas, waste, and telecommunications expenses; and provides telecom expense management solutions, as well as church management software solution and on-line platform to provide generosity services for faith-based and non-profit organizations. In addition, the company, through its banking subsidiary, Cass Commercial Bank, provides a range of banking products and services, such as demand, savings, time, and money market deposits; commercial, industrial, commercial real estate, and construction and land development loans; and cash management services to privately held businesses, restaurant franchises, and faith-related ministries. Further, it provides B2B payment platform for clients that require an agile fintech partner. It operates through its banking facility near downtown St. Louis, Missouri; operating branch in the Bridgeton, Missouri; and leased facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The company was formerly known as Cass Commercial Corporation and changed its name to Cass Information Systems, Inc. in January 2001. Cass Information Systems, Inc. was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri.

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc. provides payment technology and software solutions for card, check, and digital-based payments in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through two segments, Merchant Solutions and Issuer Solutions. The Merchant Solutions segment offers authorization, settlement and funding, customer support, chargeback resolution, terminal rental, sales and deployment, payment security, and consolidated billing and reporting services. This segment also provides an array of enterprise software solutions that streamline business operations of its customers in various vertical markets; and value-added solutions and services, such as point-of-sale software, analytics and customer engagement, payroll and reporting, and human capital management. The Issuer Solutions segment offers solutions that enable financial institutions and retailers to manage their card portfolios through a platform; and commercial payments, account payables, and electronic payment alternatives solutions for businesses and governments. It markets its products and services through direct sales force, trade associations, agent and enterprise software providers, referral arrangements with value-added resellers, and independent sales organizations. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.