CardConnect-Lavu Tie Up for Integrated Payment Solutions

Shares of First Data Corporation FDC have fared well in a year’s time. The stock has gained 26.9%, against the industry’s decline of 2.2%.

Recently, First Data subsidiary CardConnect announced a partnership with mobile point-of-sale system for restaurants, Lavu.

The partnership involves integration of CardConnect’s platform powered by Bolt P2PE with Lavu’s mobile point-of-sale. The combined offering known as LavuPay uses advanced payment devices featuring PCI-Validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) and tokenization to provide users secure payment processing as well as advanced data breach protection.

Aimed at streamlining payment processing for restaurants, LavuPay is a single source solution built on developer-friendly APIs and equipped with contactless as well as mobile payment acceptance capabilities.

Rob Nathan, executive vice president, CardConnect, stated, “The opportunity to work closely with Lavu is one we’re excited about. Together, we’re pairing the best payment and restaurant management solutions with unparalleled customer service to drive maximum value for our customers.”

Our Take

We believe that the collaboration will help First Data boost the Global Business Solutions segment, which includes debit and credit card transaction fees, fees paid for providing processing, loyalty and software services as well as sales and leases of point-of-sale devices.

Performance in the segment was particularly strong in the last reported quarter with revenues of $1.45 billion, which grew 18% year over year on a reported basis, 14% on a comparable accounting basis and 8% on an organic constant-currency basis.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Currently, First Data carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

A few better-ranked stocks in the broader Business Services Sector include ICF International, Inc. ICFI, WEX Inc. WEX and Paychex, Inc. PAYX, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

The long-term expected EPS (three to five years) growth rate for ICF International, WEX and Paychex is 10%, 15%, and 8.4%, respectively.

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