Which is better, FICO or FOUR?

On the Buffett-Fit framework, Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) currently grades higher than FOUR — 85/100 (A grade) vs 48/100 (D). That said, "better" depends on which framework you trust — FICO wins on Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Philip Fisher, Joel Greenblatt, Charlie Munger, and Terry Smith; FOUR wins on Peter Lynch. The full pillar breakdown is on this page.

Should I buy FICO or FOUR?

This page is an educational comparison, not investment advice. Both FICO and FOUR are graded against the same Buffett 5-pillar framework (moat, earnings durability, management quality, financial health, valuation) plus six other documented investor frameworks. Read the side-by-side breakdown to see which one matches the criteria you care about most — and always do your own research before making any investment decision.

Is FICO better than FOUR for value investing?

On the Buffett-style value-investing framework, FICO currently grades higher — 85/100 vs 48/100, a 37-point gap. The gap is driven by which pillars each stock passes; the table on this page shows moat, durability, management, financial health, and valuation side-by-side.

What's the difference between FICO and FOUR on Warren Buffett's framework?

Both stocks are evaluated on the same five pillars: economic moat (durable competitive advantage), earnings durability (consistent profitability), management quality (capital allocation), financial health (conservative balance sheet), and valuation (margin of safety). FICO currently scores 85/100 (A grade); FOUR scores 48/100 (D grade). The "Where each wins" section on this page breaks down which pillar each stock dominates.

Which has the stronger moat, FICO or FOUR?

Moat strength is one of the five pillars in the Buffett-Fit score on this page. FICO and FOUR are each scored on ROIC sustainability, gross-margin durability, and qualitative signals like brand strength, switching costs, network effects, and regulatory barriers. The pillar breakdown on this page shows the moat sub-score side-by-side so you can see which one has the more durable competitive advantage.

Which is more undervalued, FICO or FOUR?

Valuation is one of the five Buffett-Fit pillars on this page. Both stocks are scored on owner-earnings yield, price-to-intrinsic-value vs the underlying compounding rate, and the margin of safety relative to a conservative DCF. The valuation sub-score in the table below tells you which one currently trades at a more attractive price relative to its underlying business quality.

Are FICO and FOUR both Technology stocks?

Yes — both Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) and Shift4 Payments, Inc. (FOUR) operate in the Technology sector. That makes this a direct sector-peer comparison, which is the apples-to-apples way to use the Buffett-Fit framework: the score weighs each stock against its sector's specific quality and valuation benchmarks (sector-relative bonus), so the cross-stock comparison isn't distorted by inter-sector base-rate differences.

Is this FICO vs FOUR comparison investment advice?

No. This page is an educational pattern-match against documented public frameworks (Buffett, Graham, Fisher, Lynch, Greenblatt, Munger, Smith), not personalised investment advice. The scores reflect how closely each stock matches each framework's documented criteria — they are not buy/hold/sell recommendations. Always do your own research and consult a licensed financial adviser for personalised advice.

Stock comparison

Fair Isaac

FICO$25.19BTechnology Market cap, Sector

Shift4 Payments

FOUR$3.83BTechnology Market cap, Sector

Overall winner

Fair Isaac

FICO 61 FOUR

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

Fit scores by strategy

FICO6wins

1winsFOUR

Warren Buffett

85A

D48

Benjamin Graham

88A

D51

Philip Fisher

85A

D50

Peter Lynch

70B

B78

Joel Greenblatt

94A

F33

Charlie Munger

91A

F42

Terry Smith

95A

F33

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	FICO	FOUR
Market cap	Winner: $25.19B	$3.83B
P/E (TTM)	33.8x	30.3x Winner
EV/EBIT	30.9x	22.6x Winner
ROIC (TTM)	Winner: 53.2%	4.31%
Gross margin	Winner: 84.16%	35.11%
Net margin	Winner: 33.67%	2.29%
Revenue CAGR 5y	10.89%	32.22% Winner
EPS CAGR 5y	18.48%	-
Debt / Equity	Winner: -	2.8x
Dividend yield	0.0%	0.0%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

FICO leads on

Debt / Equity-vs 2.8x+163%
Net margin33.67%vs 2.29%+93%
ROIC (TTM)53.2%vs 4.31%+92%
Market cap$25.19Bvs $3.83B+85%

FOUR leads on

Revenue CAGR 5y32.22%vs 10.89%+66%
EV/EBIT22.6xvs 30.9x+27%
P/E (TTM)30.3xvs 33.8x+10%

More like FICO

FICO vs FTNT FICO vs CAMS.BO FICO vs TNE.AX FICO vs 4071.T

More like FOUR

FOUR vs FTNT FOUR vs CAMS.BO FOUR vs TNE.AX FOUR vs 4071.T

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for FICO Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for FOUR

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.

Stock comparison

Fair Isaac

FICO$25.19BTechnology Market cap, Sector

Shift4 Payments

FOUR$3.83BTechnology Market cap, Sector

Overall winner

Fair Isaac

FICO 61 FOUR

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

Fit scores by strategy

FICO6wins

1winsFOUR

Warren Buffett

85A

D48

Benjamin Graham

88A

D51

Philip Fisher

85A

D50

Peter Lynch

70B

B78

Joel Greenblatt

94A

F33

Charlie Munger

91A

F42

Terry Smith

95A

F33

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	FICO	FOUR
Market cap	Winner: $25.19B	$3.83B
P/E (TTM)	33.8x	30.3x Winner
EV/EBIT	30.9x	22.6x Winner
ROIC (TTM)	Winner: 53.2%	4.31%
Gross margin	Winner: 84.16%	35.11%
Net margin	Winner: 33.67%	2.29%
Revenue CAGR 5y	10.89%	32.22% Winner
EPS CAGR 5y	18.48%	-
Debt / Equity	Winner: -	2.8x
Dividend yield	0.0%	0.0%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

FICO leads on

Debt / Equity-vs 2.8x+163%
Net margin33.67%vs 2.29%+93%
ROIC (TTM)53.2%vs 4.31%+92%
Market cap$25.19Bvs $3.83B+85%

FOUR leads on

Revenue CAGR 5y32.22%vs 10.89%+66%
EV/EBIT22.6xvs 30.9x+27%
P/E (TTM)30.3xvs 33.8x+10%

More like FICO

FICO vs FTNT FICO vs CAMS.BO FICO vs TNE.AX FICO vs 4071.T

More like FOUR

FOUR vs FTNT FOUR vs CAMS.BO FOUR vs TNE.AX FOUR vs 4071.T

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for FICO Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for FOUR

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.