Comparing Western Union (NYSE:WU) and Corpay (NYSE:CPAY)

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Western Union and Corpay, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Western Union	5	10	0	0	1.67
Corpay	0	5	10	0	2.67

Western Union presently has a consensus price target of $8.82, suggesting a potential downside of 9.65%. Corpay has a consensus price target of $377.57, suggesting a potential upside of 20.03%. Given Corpay’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Corpay is more favorable than Western Union.

Volatility and Risk

Western Union has a beta of 0.51, indicating that its stock price is 49% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Corpay has a beta of 0.8, indicating that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

91.8% of Western Union shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.8% of Corpay shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Western Union shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.0% of Corpay 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.

Earnings and Valuation

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Western Union	$4.05 billion	0.76	$499.60 million	$1.52	6.42
Corpay	$4.53 billion	4.86	$1.07 billion	$15.04	20.92

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

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Western Union	12.33%	62.01%	7.09%
Corpay	23.62%	37.13%	6.76%

Summary

Corpay beats Western Union on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

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 Corpay

Corpay, Inc. operates as a payments company that helps businesses and consumers manage vehicle-related expenses, lodging expenses, and corporate payments in the United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company offers vehicle payment solutions, which include fuel, tolls, parking, fleet maintenance, and long-haul transportation services, as well as prepaid food and transportation vouchers and cards. It also provides corporate payment solutions consisting of accounts payable automation; virtual cards, cross-border solutions; and purchasing and travel and entertainment card products, as well as lodging payments solutions for employees who travel overnight for work purposes; traveling crews and stranded passengers from airlines and cruise lines; and insurance policyholders displaced from their homes due to damage or catastrophe. In addition, the company offers gifts and payroll cards. It serves business, merchant, consumer, and payment network customers. The company was formerly known as FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Corpay, Inc. in March 2024. Corpay, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.