ACIW vs GPN vs PAY Stock Comparison

Aci Worldwide, Global Payments and Paymentus Holdings Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ACIW Aci Worldwide, Inc.
$55.68 +12.5% 1M +10.5% 1Y
Market cap
$5.56B
P/E
24.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.82B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
7 wins
GPN Global Payments Inc
$81.87 -5.4% 1M -6.3% 1Y
Market cap
$22.00B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$10.23B
Div. yield
0.01%
Payment Processing Technology
3 wins
PAY Paymentus Holdings, Inc.
$32.48 +7.6% 1M +4.1% 1Y
Market cap
$4.01B
P/E
47.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.36B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
1 win

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Aci Worldwide leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Aci Worldwide 7, Global Payments 3, Paymentus Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionACIWGPNPAYLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.56B $22.00B $4.01B GPN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 24.6x -23.6x 47.2x ACIW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.1x 6.4x 39.1x GPN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +7.0% +32.5% +30.2% GPN
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 12.4% -9.1% 6.2% ACIW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 10.8% 2.3% — ACIW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.9x 4.8x — ACIW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +10.5% -6.3% +4.1% ACIW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +13.0%/yr -10.7%/yr +5.3%/yr ACIW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 35.0% 40.6% 61.1% ACIW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 68/100 50/100 72/100 PAY

Percentile Scorecard

ACIWGPNPAY

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisACIWGPNPAY
Valuation 76 #25 of 99 75 #26 of 99 63 #37 of 99
Growth 69 #30 of 94 26 #70 of 94 89 #11 of 94
Profitability 80 #19 of 90 64 #33 of 90 75 #23 of 90
Financial Health 61 #42 of 105 23 #81 of 105 96 #5 of 105
Shareholder Returns 55 #28 of 61 62 #24 of 61 38 #38 of 61
Overall 68 50 72
  • ACIW ranked among 109 companies in Fintech
  • GPN ranked among 109 companies in Fintech
  • PAY ranked among 109 companies in Fintech

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodACIWGPNPAYSPY
1 month +12.5%-5.4%+7.6% -0.8%
3 months -3.8%-2.6%+3.2% +3.5%
6 months +28.4%+19.8%+17.1% +7.0%
Year to date +16.5%+5.8%+2.8% +12.2%
1 year +10.5%-6.3%+4.1% +13.0%
3 years +181.9%-20.3%+127.3% +86.3%
3 years, per year +41.3%-7.3%+31.5% +23.1%
5 years +84.2%-43.2%+29.3% +68.6%
5 years, per year +13.0%-10.7%+5.3% +11.0%
10 years +191.5%+11.1%— +258.0%
10 years, per year +11.3%+1.1%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureACIWGPNPAYSPY
Volatility, 1Y 35.0%40.6%61.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 36.6%37.1%57.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.351.020.80 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.30-0.150.07 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -44.2%-58.8%-80.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.5%-13.7%-27.3% -1.8%
52-week high $60.18$94.85$44.65 $779.14
52-week low $38.47$62.47$20.21 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleACIWGPNPAY
P/E now vs peer median 25.0xmedian 20.6x -23.7xmedian 20.6x 48.2xmedian 20.6x
P/S now vs peer median 3.1xmedian 2.3x 2.1xmedian 2.3x 3.0xmedian 2.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.8xmedian 15.4x 10.6xmedian 15.4x 25.6xmedian 15.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 18.1xmedian 16.4x 26.5xmedian 16.4x 25.7xmedian 16.4x
P/B now vs peer median 3.8xmedian 1.9x 0.9xmedian 1.9x 6.7xmedian 1.9x
PEG now vs peer median 0.52median 1.05 0.51median 1.05 0.37median 1.05

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsACIWGPNPAY
Revenue $1.82B $10.23B $1.36B
Gross profit $893.35M $6.54B $339.38M
Operating income $338.68M $1.27B $103.10M
Net income $225.69M -$873.78M $84.86M
Free cash flow $311.41M $822.72M $159.14M
R&D $179.52M – $62.79M
EPS (diluted) $2.22 $-3.46 $0.66
Cash & equivalents $167.40M $5.41B $377.69M
Total debt $822.18M $23.56B –
Shares (diluted) 101.68M 270.12M 129.01M
Enterprise value $4.84B -$205.52M $2.68B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricACIWGPNPAY
P/E 25.0x -23.7x 48.2x
P/FCF 18.1x 26.5x 25.7x
P/Operating cash flow 17.1x 13.1x 25.6x
P/S 3.1x 2.1x 3.0x
P/B 3.8x 0.9x 6.7x
P/Tangible book 3.8x 5.0x 6.8x
EV/EBITDA 17.8x 10.6x 25.6x
EV/EBIT 18.6x 31.5x 36.0x
EV/Revenue 3.5x 3.9x 2.7x
EV/FCF 20.2x 48.5x 23.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.1x 24.1x 23.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.52 0.51 0.37

Growth

14 metrics
MetricACIWGPNPAY
Revenue growth (1Y) 7.0% 32.5% 30.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 9.9% 3.3% 34.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 4.5% 14.8% 28.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 10.6% 5.7% 27.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 0.1% -33.4% 78.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 34.9% -4.4% 189.2%
Net income growth (1Y) -10.1% -158.6% 51.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 44.8% -44.6% 132.4%
EPS growth (1Y) -7.1% -158.9% 51.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 48.0% -46.2% 129.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 6.9% -46.4% 36.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 35.3% -9.1% 53.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 6.0% -66.6% 36.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 37.8% -19.7% 54.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricACIWGPNPAY
Gross margin 49.1% 63.9% 24.9%
EBITDA margin 19.4% 36.8% 10.7%
Operating margin 18.6% 12.4% 7.6%
Pretax margin 16.8% 5.5% 8.4%
Net margin 12.4% -9.1% 6.2%
FCF margin 17.1% 8.0% 11.7%
Operating cash flow margin 18.1% 16.2% 11.7%
Return on equity 15.1% -3.5% 14.2%
Return on assets 7.3% -1.3% 11.9%
Return on invested capital 10.8% 2.3% –
Return on capital employed 14.3% 2.5% 16.9%
Asset turnover 0.6x 0.2x 1.9x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x -1.9x 1.9x
Stock comp / revenue 4.3% 1.3% 1.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricACIWGPNPAY
Debt / assets 26.6% 37.1% –
Debt / equity 0.5x 1.0x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.9x 4.8x –
Debt / FCF 2.6x 28.6x –
Liabilities / assets 51.6% 62.6% 15.4%
Equity / assets 48.4% 37.4% 84.6%
Interest coverage 6.4x 1.5x –
Current ratio 1.6x 0.8x 4.9x
Quick ratio 2.0x 0.7x 4.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.4x 3.7x
Altman Z-score 4.08 0.60 25.32

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricACIWGPNPAY
Dividend yield – 1.2% –
Net buyback yield 2.9% 7.2% 0.0%
Shareholder yield 2.9% 8.4% 0.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – -28.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 30.6% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 1.8% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – -1.7% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusACIWGPNPAY
Forward P/E 20.1xFY2026 6.4xFY2026 39.1xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.77FY2026 $12.82FY2026 $0.83FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +28.2%FY2026 +4.9%FY2026 +25.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +12.6% +18.0% +24.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.81BFY2026 $12.66BFY2026 $1.36BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.0%FY2026 +35.9%FY2026 +13.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +20.2% +8.4% +33.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersACIWGPNPAY
Held by institutions 100.0% 100.0% 89.6%
Institutions holding 378 792 185
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.5% +7.4% +3.9%
Institutions buying 198 374 116
Institutions selling 130 307 55
Buyers to sellers 1.52 1.22 2.11

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ACIWGPNPAY
ACIW 1.00 0.51 0.42
GPN 0.51 1.00 0.48
PAY 0.42 0.48 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ACIW, GPN and PAY?

Global Payments (GPN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Aci Worldwide (ACIW) $5.56B, Global Payments (GPN) $22.00B, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) $4.01B.

Which stock is cheaper, ACIW, GPN and PAY?

Aci Worldwide (ACIW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 24.6x, Global Payments (GPN) -23.6x, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 47.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, Global Payments (GPN) is cheapest (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 20.1x, Global Payments (GPN) 6.4x, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 39.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Global Payments (GPN) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +7.0%, Global Payments (GPN) +32.5%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) +30.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Aci Worldwide (ACIW) has the highest net margin (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 12.4%, Global Payments (GPN) -9.1%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 6.2%). On return on invested capital, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) leads (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 10.8%, Global Payments (GPN) 2.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Aci Worldwide (ACIW) returned the most: Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +10.5%, Global Payments (GPN) -6.3%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) +4.1%. Over five years, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) compounded fastest (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +13.0%/yr, Global Payments (GPN) -10.7%/yr, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) +5.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 0.00%, Global Payments (GPN) 0.01%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 0.00%. Aci Worldwide (ACIW) and Paymentus Holdings (PAY) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) has been the steadiest (Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 35.0%, Global Payments (GPN) 40.6%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 61.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ACIW, GPN and PAY?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.