Sifting through countless of stocks in the Financial Services industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in StoneCo Ltd. or PagSeguro Digital Ltd. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.

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. The company offers financial services, including payment, prepayment, digital banking, and credit solutions. It distributes its solutions, principally through proprietary and franchised 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 2012 and is based in George Town, the Cayman Islands.

PagSeguro Digital Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of financial and payment solutions for consumers, individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants, and small and medium-sized companies in Brazil and internationally. It provides digital banking solutions, including deposits, top-ups, debt management services, tax collections, wire transfers, ATM withdrawals, and various online and point-of-sale (POS) payment solutions; cards, such as debit, credit, cash, and prepaid cards; and credit products comprising FGTS withdrawals, payroll loans, working capital loans, and overdraft accounts. The company offers insurance services, including account, card, home, business, health assistance, life, and credit life insurance; investment services, such as investment and portfolio advisory, financial education, brokerage, fund management, treasury, and research services; and operates Shopping PagBank, a marketplace for various brands. In addition, it provides software solutions comprising PagVendas, a POS software app; ClubPag, a marketing tool that allows merchants to advertise across client base, available for POS devices; and PlugPag, a wireless solution that connects the machine to the commercial automation system, via Bluetooth technology. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.

Latest Financial Services and StoneCo Ltd., PagSeguro Digital Ltd. Stock News

As of January 30, 2026, StoneCo Ltd. had a $4.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Financial Services median of $2.2 million. StoneCo Ltd.’s stock is up 9.1% in 2026, up 0.9% in the previous five trading days and up 81.96% in the past year.

Currently, StoneCo Ltd. does not have a price-earnings ratio. StoneCo Ltd.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.7 billion with a -7.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 18.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.784 per share for the current fiscal year. StoneCo Ltd. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of January 30, 2026, PagSeguro Digital Ltd. had a $3.3 billion market cap, putting it in the 62nd percentile of all stocks. PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s stock is up 16.7% in 2026, up 2.5% in the previous five trading days and up 59.35% in the past year.

Currently, PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s price-earnings ratio is 8.2. PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $3.7 billion with a 11.3% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 6.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.468 per share for the current fiscal year. PagSeguro Digital Ltd. currently has a 1.2% dividend yield.

How We Compare StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
StoneCo Ltd.	STNE	A
PagSeguro Digital Ltd.	PAGS	A

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

StoneCo Ltd. has a Value Score of 95, which is Deep Value. PagSeguro Digital Ltd. has a Value Score of 99, which is Deep Value.

The Value Stock Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Value Grade breakdown above, both StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. have a Value Grade of A. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, you will need to conduct further research into both of these companies’ other metrics to see if they could be good additions to your portfolio. It’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
StoneCo Ltd.	STNE	C
PagSeguro Digital Ltd.	PAGS	B

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

StoneCo Ltd. has a Quality Score of 44, which is Average. PagSeguro Digital Ltd. has a Quality Score of 73, which is Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: PagSeguro Digital Ltd.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, PagSeguro Digital Ltd. has a better overall quality grade than StoneCo Ltd.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, PagSeguro Digital Ltd. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
StoneCo Ltd.	STNE	B
PagSeguro Digital Ltd.	PAGS	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

StoneCo Ltd. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 63, which is Positive. PagSeguro Digital Ltd. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 48, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: StoneCo Ltd.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, StoneCo Ltd. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than PagSeguro Digital Ltd.. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, StoneCo Ltd. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. Grades

In addition to Value, Estimate Revisions and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Growth and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, StoneCo Ltd. or PagSeguro Digital Ltd. Stock?

Overall, StoneCo Ltd. stock has a Value Score of 95, Estimate Revisions Score of 63 and Quality Score of 44.

PagSeguro Digital Ltd. stock has a Value Score of 99, Estimate Revisions Score of 48 and Quality Score of 73.

Comparing StoneCo Ltd. and PagSeguro Digital Ltd.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.