Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) and Usio (NASDAQ:USIO) Head to Head Comparison

Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) and Usio (NASDAQ:USIO) are both business services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends and valuation.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

78.6% of Marqeta shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 20.2% of Usio shares are owned by institutional investors. 12.1% of Marqeta shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.8% of Usio shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Marqeta has a beta of 1.54, suggesting that its stock price is 54% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Usio has a beta of 1.49, suggesting that its stock price is 49% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Marqeta and Usio’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Marqeta	10.43%	5.11%	3.84%
Usio	3.95%	0.74%	0.12%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Marqeta and Usio”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Marqeta	$506.99 million	5.29	$27.29 million	$0.10	57.30
Usio	$82.93 million	0.57	$3.31 million	$0.11	16.18

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Marqeta and Usio, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Marqeta	0	10	3	0	2.23
Usio	1	0	1	0	2.00

Marqeta presently has a consensus price target of $5.55, suggesting a potential downside of 3.22%. Usio has a consensus price target of $4.00, suggesting a potential upside of 124.72%. Given Usio’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Usio is more favorable than Marqeta.

Summary

Marqeta beats Usio on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Marqeta

Marqeta, Inc. operates a cloud-based open application programming interface platform that delivers card issuing and transaction processing services. It offers its solutions in various verticals, including financial services, on-demand services, expense management, and e-commerce enablement, as well as buy now, pay later. Marqeta, Inc. was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Oakland, California.

About Usio

Usio, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated electronic payment processing services to merchants and businesses in the United States. The company offers various types of automated clearing house (ACH) processing; and credit, prepaid card, and debit card-based processing services. Its ACH transaction processing services include Represented Check and Check Conversion for electronic payment facilitation. In addition, the company offers merchant account services for the processing of card-based transactions through the VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and JCB networks, including online terminal services accessed through a website or retail services accessed through a physical terminal. Further, it provides a proprietary web-based customer service application that allows companies to process one-time and recurring payments through e-checks or credit cards; and an interactive voice response telephone system to companies, which accept payments directly from consumers over the telephone using e-checks or credit cards. Additionally, the company offers prepaid and incentive card issuance services; and operates a prepaid core processing platform, as well as provides additional services, such as electronic bill presentment, document composition, document decomposition, and printing and mailing services for various industry verticals, including utilities and financial institutions. It markets and sells ACH products and services primarily through resellers; and prepaid card program directly to government entities, corporations, and to consumers through the internet. The company was formerly known as Payment Data Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Usio, Inc. in June 2019. Usio, Inc. was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas.