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Shift4 PaymentsFOURPA.PFD +7.11%75 Operating Margin % is 7.34% as of Jun. 2026, which is 253% above its 10-year median of 2.08. GuruFocus rates FOURPA.PFD with a GF Score™ of 75/100. The stock has 7 warning signs investors should review. Among 2,825 Software companies, Shift4 Payments ranks better than 63.19% on this metric.
Just like Gross Margin %, it is important to see a company maintains its operating margin over time. Among the same industry, a company with higher operating margin is more efficient in its operation. It is also more stable during industry slowdown or recessions. Peter Lynch prefers those with higher margins than those with lower margins.
Be Aware
Operating Margin % can be manipulated by adjusting the rate of depreciation, depletion and amortization (DDA).
If a company is facing competition, its Operating Margin % may decline. Often the Operating Margin % declines well before the company's Revenue or even profit decline. Therefore, Operating Margin % is a very important indicator of whether the company is facing problems.
For instance, by 2012, Nokia (NOK)'s problems were well known and its stock had lost more than 90% of its market value since 2007. But Nokias Operating Margin % had already been in decline since 2002, although its Earnings per Share (Diluted) were still rising. Investors who paid attention to Operating Margin % would have avoided this huge loss. The same can be said for Research-in-Motion (RIMM).
Therefore, Operating Margin % is a very important screening filter for GuruFocus. GuruFocus's Buffett-Munger screener requires that the profit margin is either consistent or expanding. The Model Portfolio of the Buffett-Munger screener has outperformed the market every year since inception in 2009.
Shift4 Payments Operating Margin % Related Terms
Shift4 Payments Operating Margin % Historical Data
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The historical data trend for Shift4 Payments's Operating Margin % can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
FOURPA.PFD vs BOX, BLSH, PAY: Operating Margin % Comparison
For the Software - Infrastructure subindustry, Shift4 Payments's Operating Margin %, along with its competitors' market caps and Operating Margin % data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Shift4 Payments Operating Margin % vs Software Industry
For the Software industry and Technology sector, Shift4 Payments's Operating Margin % distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Shift4 Payments's Operating Margin % falls into.
Operating Margin % - also known as operating income margin, operating profit margin and return on sales (ROS) - is the ratio of Operating Income divided by net sales or Revenue, usually presented in percent.
Shift4 Payments's Operating Margin % for the fiscal year that ended in Dec. 2025 is calculated as
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
Shift4 Payments (FOURPA.PFD) has a Operating Margin % of 7.34% as of Jun. 2026. Operating margin is the ratio of total operating income to net sales. View historical data on Shift4 Payments and its competitors. This is 253% above median its historical median of 2.08. According to the industry distribution chart, Shift4 Payments ranks #1040 out of 2825 companies in the Software industry, placing it in the top 36.8%.
Is Shift4 Payments' Operating Margin % too high?
Shift4 Payments' current Operating Margin % of 7.34% is 253% above median its 10-year median of 2.08. The Software industry median Operating Margin % is 3.94. Shift4 Payments' value of 7.34% is 86.3% above this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Shift4 Payments ranks #1040 out of 2825 companies in the Software industry, which is above the industry midpoint. Overall, Shift4 Payments has a GF Score™ of 75/100, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Shift4 Payments' Operating Margin % compare to BOX and BLSH?
According to the Software industry distribution chart, Shift4 Payments ranks #1040 out of 2825 companies for Operating Margin %. This puts Shift4 Payments in the upper half of its industry. The industry median Operating Margin % is 3.94. Shift4 Payments' value of 7.34% is 86.3% above this benchmark. While the company's 10-year median is 2.08 vs. the industry median of 3.94, Shift4 Payments has consistently been above the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Operating Margin % for a Software company?
The median Operating Margin % among Software companies is 3.94, based on 2,825 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Operating Margin % significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Operating Margin % should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Shift4 Payments's current Operating Margin % of 7.34% is 86.3% above the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Operating Margin % mean?
A high Operating Margin % can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Operating margin is the ratio of total operating income to net sales. View historical data on Shift4 Payments and its competitors. For the Software industry, the median Operating Margin % is 3.94 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Shift4 Payments's current Operating Margin % is 7.34%, which is 253% above median its own 10-year median of 2.08. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Shift4 Payments stock overvalued right now?
Shift4 Payments (FOURPA.PFD) has a current Operating Margin % of 7.34%. The current Operating Margin % is 7.34%, which is 253% above median its 10-year median of 2.08 and 86.3% above the Software industry median of 3.94. Shift4 Payments' overall GF Score™ is 75/100 with 7 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Operating Margin % calculated?
Operating Margin % is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Shift4 Payments (FOURPA.PFD), the current Operating Margin % is 7.34% as of Jun. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Shift4 Payments Inc is an independent provider of software and payment processing solutions in the U.S., expanding internationally. Its payments platform offers integrated products and services across in-store, online, mobile and tablet-based channels, including end-to-end payment processing, merchant acquiring services, a proprietary omni-channel gateway, eCommerce capabilities, and reporting tools. The company distributes its services through internal sales teams and partners, including independent software vendors (ISVs) and value-added resellers (VARs). Revenue is predominantly recurring, derived mainly from processing fees and subscription revenue from POS software, business intelligence tools and other technology solutions. The company derives maximum revenue from the United States.
75GF Score
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