Analyzing Fiserv (NASDAQ:FISV) & PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR)

Fiserv (NASDAQ:FISV) and PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR) are both business services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

91.0% of Fiserv shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Fiserv shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of PAR Technology shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fiserv	17.05%	19.47%	6.43%
PAR Technology	-19.21%	-2.56%	-1.58%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Fiserv and PAR Technology, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fiserv	3	23	10	0	2.19
PAR Technology	1	2	6	0	2.56

Fiserv presently has a consensus price target of $121.08, suggesting a potential upside of 81.89%. PAR Technology has a consensus price target of $64.00, suggesting a potential upside of 70.65%. Given Fiserv’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Fiserv is more favorable than PAR Technology.

Risk and Volatility

Fiserv has a beta of 0.8, indicating that its share price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PAR Technology has a beta of 1.38, indicating that its share price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fiserv	$21.16 billion	1.71	$3.13 billion	$6.47	10.29
PAR Technology	$349.98 million	4.35	-$4.99 million	($2.14)	-17.53

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

Summary

Fiserv beats PAR Technology on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Fiserv

Fiserv, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides payments and financial services technology services in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. It operates through Merchant Acceptance, Financial Technology, and Payments and Network segments. The Merchant Acceptance segment provides merchant acquiring and digital commerce services; mobile payment services; security and fraud protection products; Clover, a cloud based POS and integrated commerce operating system for small and mid-sized businesses and independent software vendors; and Carat, an integrated operating system for large businesses. This segment distributes through various channels, including direct sales teams, strategic partnerships with agent sales forces, independent software vendors, financial institutions, and other strategic partners in the form of joint venture alliances, revenue sharing alliances, and referral agreement. The Financial Technology segment offers customer deposit and loan accounts, as well as manages an institution's general ledger and central information files. This segment also provides digital banking, financial and risk management, professional services and consulting, check processing, and other products and services. The Payments and Network segment offers card transactions, such as debit, credit, and prepaid card processing and services; funds access, debit payments, cardless ATM access, and surcharge-free ATM network; security and fraud protection products; card production; print services; and various network services, as well as non-card digital payment software and services, including bill payment, account-to-account transfers, person-to-person payments, electronic billing, and security and fraud protection products. It serves merchants, banks, credit unions, other financial institutions, and corporate clients. Fiserv, Inc. was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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.