FOUR vs ACIW vs PAY Stock Comparison

Shift4 Payments, Aci Worldwide and Paymentus Holdings Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FOUR Shift4 Payments, Inc.
$44.77 +19.2% 1M -32.9% 1Y
Market cap
$2.97B
P/E
67.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.78B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
2 wins
ACIW Aci Worldwide, Inc.
$59.19 +15.6% 1M +25.0% 1Y
Market cap
$6.36B
P/E
28.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.82B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
8 wins
PAY Paymentus Holdings, Inc.
$33.49 +5.8% 1M -7.2% 1Y
Market cap
$4.16B
P/E
43.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.42B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
1 win

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Aci Worldwide leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Aci Worldwide 8, Shift4 Payments 2, Paymentus Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFOURACIWPAYLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.97B $6.36B $4.16B ACIW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 67.9x 28.2x 43.9x ACIW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 8.1x 21.4x 40.3x FOUR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +32.4% +7.0% +26.5% FOUR
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 0.9% 12.4% 6.7% ACIW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 4.9% 10.8% — ACIW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 4.5x 1.9x — ACIW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -32.9% +25.0% -7.2% ACIW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -5.9%/yr +12.9%/yr +4.1%/yr ACIW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 66.2% 34.8% 58.3% ACIW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 64/100 67/100 73/100 PAY

Percentile Scorecard

FOURACIWPAY

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

AxisFOURACIWPAY
Valuation 85 #16 of 99 76 #25 of 99 68 #32 of 99
Growth 69 #30 of 94 66 #33 of 94 88 #12 of 94
Profitability 67 #30 of 90 80 #19 of 90 78 #21 of 90
Financial Health 19 #85 of 105 61 #42 of 105 96 #5 of 105
Shareholder Returns 82 #12 of 63 55 #29 of 63 37 #40 of 63
Overall 64 67 73
  • FOUR ranked among 109 companies in Fintech
  • ACIW 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

PeriodFOURACIWPAYSPY
1 month +19.2%+15.6%+5.8% -1.0%
3 months -16.1%+2.4%-16.3% -0.4%
6 months +4.4%+36.8%+23.4% +4.5%
Year to date -28.9%+23.8%+6.0% +12.4%
1 year -32.9%+25.0%-7.2% +13.6%
3 years -7.5%+145.7%+116.2% +76.4%
3 years, per year -2.6%+35.0%+29.3% +20.8%
5 years -26.1%+83.0%+22.0% +63.7%
5 years, per year -5.9%+12.9%+4.1% +10.4%
10 years —+248.0%— +267.7%
10 years, per year —+13.3%— +13.9%

Risk

MeasureFOURACIWPAYSPY
Volatility, 1Y 66.2%34.8%58.3% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 69.8%36.4%59.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.370.320.94 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.500.72-0.12 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -71.7%-44.2%-80.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -39.3%-1.6%-25.0% -1.6%
52-week high $73.78$60.18$44.65 $779.14
52-week low $35.57$38.47$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.

MultipleFOURACIWPAY
P/E now vs peer median 81.0xmedian 21.9x 26.6xmedian 21.9x 44.6xmedian 21.9x
P/S now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 2.3x 3.3xmedian 2.3x 3.0xmedian 2.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.9xmedian 16.4x 18.8xmedian 16.4x 24.1xmedian 16.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 16.1xmedian 17.4x 19.2xmedian 17.4x 25.2xmedian 17.4x
P/B now vs peer median 4.0xmedian 1.7x 4.0xmedian 1.7x 6.6xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median -2.37median 0.91 0.56median 0.91 0.51median 0.91

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 monthsFOURACIWPAY
Revenue $4.78B $1.82B $1.42B
Gross profit $1.72B $893.35M $358.38M
Operating income $387.50M $338.68M $116.78M
Net income $122.40M $225.69M $94.59M
Free cash flow $433.00M $311.41M $167.61M
R&D – $179.52M $62.87M
EPS (diluted) $0.55 $2.22 $0.73
Cash & equivalents $356.00M $167.40M $407.62M
Total debt $4.51B $822.18M –
Shares (diluted) 79.64M 101.68M 130.34M
Enterprise value -$331.47M $5.63B $2.71B

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
MetricFOURACIWPAY
P/E 81.0x 26.6x 44.6x
P/FCF 16.1x 19.2x 25.2x
P/Operating cash flow 11.7x 18.2x 25.1x
P/S 1.5x 3.3x 3.0x
P/B 4.0x 4.0x 6.6x
P/Tangible book -5.9x 4.0x 6.7x
EV/EBITDA 11.9x 18.8x 24.1x
EV/EBIT 28.7x 19.6x 32.7x
EV/Revenue 2.3x 3.7x 2.7x
EV/FCF 25.7x 21.3x 22.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 18.7x 20.1x 22.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -2.37 0.56 0.51

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFOURACIWPAY
Revenue growth (1Y) 32.4% 7.0% 26.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 28.2% 9.9% 34.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 55.7% 4.5% 28.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 42.6% 10.6% 27.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 41.2% 0.1% 77.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 45.3% 34.9% 123.3%
Net income growth (1Y) -55.2% -10.1% 59.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -4.9% 44.8% 89.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -77.1% -7.1% 57.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -34.2% 48.0% 87.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 16.0% 6.9% 16.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 16.4% 35.3% 41.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 8.8% 6.0% 16.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 13.3% 37.8% 42.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFOURACIWPAY
Gross margin 35.9% 49.1% 25.2%
EBITDA margin 19.5% 19.4% 11.1%
Operating margin 8.1% 18.6% 8.2%
Pretax margin 3.2% 16.8% 9.0%
Net margin 0.9% 12.4% 6.7%
FCF margin 9.1% 17.1% 11.8%
Operating cash flow margin 12.4% 18.1% 11.8%
Return on equity 7.0% 15.1% 15.1%
Return on assets 1.4% 7.3% 12.7%
Return on invested capital 4.9% 10.8% –
Return on capital employed 5.5% 14.3% 18.4%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.6x 1.9x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 4.8x 1.5x 1.8x
Stock comp / revenue 1.8% 4.3% 1.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFOURACIWPAY
Debt / assets 51.9% 26.6% –
Debt / equity 2.6x 0.5x –
Net debt / EBITDA 4.5x 1.9x –
Debt / FCF 10.4x 2.6x –
Liabilities / assets 80.1% 51.6% 15.8%
Equity / assets 19.9% 48.4% 84.2%
Interest coverage 1.5x 6.4x –
Current ratio 1.2x 1.6x 4.8x
Quick ratio 1.1x 2.0x 4.7x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x 3.7x
Altman Z-score 1.24 4.22 24.47

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFOURACIWPAY
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield 9.0% 2.7% 0.0%
Shareholder yield 9.0% 2.7% 0.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

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.

ConsensusFOURACIWPAY
Forward P/E 8.1xFY2026 21.4xFY2026 40.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.50FY2026 $2.77FY2026 $0.83FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +6.4%FY2026 +28.2%FY2026 +25.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +8.7% +12.6% +24.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.44BFY2026 $1.81BFY2026 $1.36BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +23.2%FY2026 +3.0%FY2026 +13.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +6.6% +20.2% +33.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFOURACIWPAY
Held by institutions 87.4% 100.0% 44.9%
Institutions holding 358 380 185
Change in shares held, QoQ -2.3% +3.5% +3.9%
Institutions buying 187 198 116
Institutions selling 142 132 55
Buyers to sellers 1.32 1.50 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.

FOURACIWPAY
FOUR 1.00 0.46 0.42
ACIW 0.46 1.00 0.46
PAY 0.42 0.46 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FOUR, ACIW and PAY?

Aci Worldwide (ACIW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Shift4 Payments (FOUR) $2.97B, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) $6.36B, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) $4.16B.

Which stock is cheaper, FOUR, ACIW and PAY?

Aci Worldwide (ACIW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) 67.9x, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 28.2x, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 43.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Shift4 Payments (FOUR) is cheapest (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) 8.1x, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 21.4x, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 40.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Shift4 Payments (FOUR) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Shift4 Payments (FOUR) +32.4%, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +7.0%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) +26.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Aci Worldwide (ACIW) has the highest net margin (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) 0.9%, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 12.4%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 6.7%). On return on invested capital, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) leads (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) 4.9%, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 10.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Aci Worldwide (ACIW) returned the most: Shift4 Payments (FOUR) -32.9%, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +25.0%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) -7.2%. Over five years, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) compounded fastest (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) -5.9%/yr, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) +12.9%/yr, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) +4.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) has been the steadiest (Shift4 Payments (FOUR) 66.2%, Aci Worldwide (ACIW) 34.8%, Paymentus Holdings (PAY) 58.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FOUR, ACIW 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 8. 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.