Western Union (WU) Competitors

Jack Henry & Associates (NASDAQ:JKHY) and Western Union (NYSE:WU) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, dividends, community ranking, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Which has more volatility and risk, JKHY or WU?

Jack Henry & Associates has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its stock price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Western Union has a beta of 0.69, meaning that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media favor JKHY or WU?

In the previous week, Western Union had 17 more articles in the media than Jack Henry & Associates. MarketBeat recorded 36 mentions for Western Union and 19 mentions for Jack Henry & Associates. Jack Henry & Associates' average media sentiment score of 1.44 beat Western Union's score of 0.57 indicating that Jack Henry & Associates is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Jack Henry & Associates	14 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Western Union	13 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	8 Neutral mention(s)	4 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do institutionals and insiders believe in JKHY or WU?

98.8% of Jack Henry & Associates shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.8% of Western Union shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Jack Henry & Associates shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Western Union shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Is JKHY or WU a better dividend stock?

Jack Henry & Associates pays an annual dividend of $2.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Western Union pays an annual dividend of $0.94 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.7%. Jack Henry & Associates pays out 41.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Western Union pays out 35.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Jack Henry & Associates has raised its dividend for 35 consecutive years. Western Union is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Is JKHY or WU more profitable?

Western Union has a net margin of 22.19% compared to Jack Henry & Associates' net margin of 17.83%. Western Union's return on equity of 96.90% beat Jack Henry & Associates' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Jack Henry & Associates	17.83%	21.55%	14.05%
Western Union	22.19%	96.90%	7.43%

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in JKHY or WU?

Western Union received 297 more outperform votes than Jack Henry & Associates when rated by MarketBeat users. However, 52.81% of users gave Jack Henry & Associates an outperform vote while only 52.78% of users gave Western Union an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Jack Henry & Associates	Outperform Votes 301 52.81%	Underperform Votes 269 47.19%
Western Union	Outperform Votes 598 52.78%	Underperform Votes 535 47.22%

Do analysts rate JKHY or WU?

Jack Henry & Associates currently has a consensus price target of $185.30, suggesting a potential upside of 6.56%. Western Union has a consensus price target of $10.78, suggesting a potential upside of 11.63%. Given Western Union's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Western Union is more favorable than Jack Henry & Associates.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Jack Henry & Associates	1 Sell rating(s)	9 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.08
Western Union	4 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.60

Which has better earnings & valuation, JKHY or WU?

Western Union has higher revenue and earnings than Jack Henry & Associates. Western Union is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Jack Henry & Associates, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Jack Henry & Associates	$2.27B	5.58	$381.82M	$5.54	31.39
Western Union	$4.14B	0.77	$934.20M	$2.68	3.60

Summary

Jack Henry & Associates beats Western Union on 11 of the 21 factors compared between the two stocks.