Analyzing International Money Express (NASDAQ:IMXI) & StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE)

International Money Express (NASDAQ:IMXI) and StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

86.7% of International Money Express shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.2% of StoneCo shares are held by institutional investors. 5.1% of International Money Express shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.3% of StoneCo shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares International Money Express and StoneCo’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
International Money Express	3.35%	17.01%	5.44%
StoneCo	22.92%	22.19%	4.10%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for International Money Express and StoneCo, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
International Money Express	0	2	0	0	2.00
StoneCo	0	6	4	0	2.40

StoneCo has a consensus price target of $14.30, suggesting a potential upside of 56.11%. Given StoneCo’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe StoneCo is more favorable than International Money Express.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares International Money Express and StoneCo”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
International Money Express	$607.78 million	0.53	$32.67 million	$0.62	17.05
StoneCo	$2.53 billion	0.90	$425.73 million	$2.48	3.69

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

Volatility & Risk

International Money Express has a beta of 0.77, meaning that its stock price is 23% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, StoneCo has a beta of 1.75, meaning that its stock price is 75% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

StoneCo beats International Money Express on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About International Money Express

International Money Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an omnichannel money remittance services company in the United States, Latin America, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia. The company offers remittance services, which include a suite of ancillary financial processing solutions and payment services; and online payment options, pre-paid debit cards, and direct deposit payroll cards. It provides services through sending and paying agents and company-operated stores, as well as through online and Internet-enabled mobile devices. International Money Express, Inc. is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

About StoneCo

StoneCo Ltd. provides financial technology and software solutions to merchants and integrated partners to conduct electronic commerce across in-store, online, and mobile channels in Brazil. It distributes its solutions, principally through proprietary Stone Hubs, which offer hyper-local sales and services; and sells solutions to brick-and-mortar and digital merchants through sales team. The company served small-and-medium-sized businesses; and marketplaces, e-commerce platforms, and integrated software vendors. StoneCo Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in George Town, the Cayman Islands.