Reviewing PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR) & Corpay (NYSE:CPAY)

PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR) 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 institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for PAR Technology and Corpay, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PAR Technology	1	1	5	0	2.57
Corpay	0	5	10	0	2.67

PAR Technology currently has a consensus target price of $34.20, suggesting a potential upside of 137.20%. Corpay has a consensus target price of $377.57, suggesting a potential upside of 32.18%. Given PAR Technology’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe PAR Technology is more favorable than Corpay.

Profitability

This table compares PAR Technology and Corpay’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PAR Technology	-18.54%	-2.32%	-1.42%
Corpay	23.62%	37.13%	6.76%

Risk and Volatility

PAR Technology has a beta of 1.36, meaning that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Corpay has a beta of 0.8, meaning that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

98.8% of Corpay shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of PAR Technology shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.0% of Corpay shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares PAR Technology and Corpay”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PAR Technology	$455.55 million	1.30	-$84.46 million	($2.08)	-6.93
Corpay	$4.53 billion	4.41	$1.07 billion	$15.04	18.99

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

Summary

Corpay beats PAR Technology on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PAR Technology

PAR Technology Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides omnichannel cloud-based hardware and software solutions to the restaurant and retail industries worldwide. The Restaurant/Retail segment offers PUNCHH, an enterprise-grade customer loyalty and engagement solution; MENU, an eCommerce platform for restaurant brands; BRINK POS, an open cloud, point-of-sale solution; PAR PAYMENT SERVICES, a merchant services business that enables electronic payment and processing services for businesses; and DATA CENTRAL, a back-office solution that leverages business intelligence and automation technologies. This segment also offers Point-of-Sale Hardware; wireless headsets for drive-thru order-taking; and kitchen display systems, payment devices, cash drawers, printers, and other peripherals. In addition, this segment provides services, such as hardware repair, installation and implementation, training, and on-site and technical support services. The Government segment provides intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions; mission systems operations and maintenance, and commercial software products; systems engineering support and software-based solutions; satellite and teleport facility operation and maintenance, engineering, and installation services comprising inside and outside plant services, and maintenance of infrastructure and information systems; satellite ground system support comprising operations and maintenance, sustainment, upgrades, communications security management, anomaly response/resolution, process improvement, emergency response, and disaster recovery services; and information technology infrastructure library services to the United States Department of Defense, intelligence community (IC), and other federal agencies. This segment also offers various IC support services, systems integration, situational awareness solutions, and mission readiness support services. The company was founded in 1968 and is based in New Hartford, New York.

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.