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Side-by-side financial comparison of MSA Safety Inc (MSA) and Paycom (PAYC). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

Paycom is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($544.3M vs $510.9M, roughly 1.1× MSA Safety Inc). Paycom runs the higher net margin — 20.9% vs 17.0%, a 3.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Paycom posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (10.2% vs 2.2%). Paycom produced more free cash flow last quarter ($122.6M vs $106.0M). Over the past eight quarters, MSA Safety Inc's revenue compounded faster (11.2% CAGR vs 4.3%).

Mine Safety Appliances, or MSA Safety Incorporated, is an American manufacturer and supplier of safety equipment designed for use in a variety of hazardous conditions in industries such as construction, the military, fire service, and chemical, oil, and gas production. MSA is based in the Pittsburgh suburb of Cranberry.

Paycom Software, Inc., known simply as Paycom, is an online payroll and human resource software provider based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with offices throughout the United States. It is attributed with being one of the first fully online payroll providers. Founded in 1998, it reported annual revenue of $2.052 billion for 2025, up from $1.883 billion for 2024.

MSA vs PAYC — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
PAYC
PAYC
1.1× larger
PAYC
$544.3M
$510.9M
MSA
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
PAYC
PAYC
+8.0% gap
PAYC
10.2%
2.2%
MSA
Higher net margin
PAYC
PAYC
3.9% more per $
PAYC
20.9%
17.0%
MSA
More free cash flow
PAYC
PAYC
$16.6M more FCF
PAYC
$122.6M
$106.0M
MSA
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
MSA
MSA
Annualised
MSA
11.2%
4.3%
PAYC

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Revenue
$510.9M
$544.3M
Net Profit
$86.9M
$113.8M
Gross Margin
46.9%
83.9%
Operating Margin
22.3%
28.9%
Net Margin
17.0%
20.9%
Revenue YoY
2.2%
10.2%
Net Profit YoY
-1.2%
0.2%
EPS (diluted)
$2.22
$2.06

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$510.9M
$544.3M
Q3 25
$468.4M
$493.3M
Q2 25
$474.1M
$483.6M
Q1 25
$421.3M
$530.5M
Q4 24
$499.7M
$493.9M
Q3 24
$432.7M
$451.9M
Q2 24
$462.5M
$437.5M
Q1 24
$413.3M
$499.9M
Net Profit
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$86.9M
$113.8M
Q3 25
$69.6M
$110.7M
Q2 25
$62.8M
$89.5M
Q1 25
$59.6M
$139.4M
Q4 24
$87.9M
$113.6M
Q3 24
$66.6M
$73.3M
Q2 24
$72.2M
$68.0M
Q1 24
$58.1M
$247.2M
Gross Margin
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
46.9%
83.9%
Q3 25
46.5%
82.7%
Q2 25
46.6%
81.9%
Q1 25
45.9%
84.1%
Q4 24
46.9%
83.1%
Q3 24
47.9%
80.5%
Q2 24
48.2%
80.8%
Q1 24
47.3%
84.3%
Operating Margin
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
22.3%
28.9%
Q3 25
20.1%
22.8%
Q2 25
18.1%
23.2%
Q1 25
18.5%
34.9%
Q4 24
23.5%
30.1%
Q3 24
21.1%
23.2%
Q2 24
21.6%
21.7%
Q1 24
19.4%
57.2%
Net Margin
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
17.0%
20.9%
Q3 25
14.9%
22.4%
Q2 25
13.2%
18.5%
Q1 25
14.1%
26.3%
Q4 24
17.6%
23.0%
Q3 24
15.4%
16.2%
Q2 24
15.6%
15.5%
Q1 24
14.1%
49.4%
EPS (diluted)
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$2.22
$2.06
Q3 25
$1.77
$1.96
Q2 25
$1.59
$1.58
Q1 25
$1.51
$2.48
Q4 24
$2.22
$2.04
Q3 24
$1.69
$1.31
Q2 24
$1.83
$1.20
Q1 24
$1.47
$4.37

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$165.1M
$370.0M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$580.9M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$1.4B
$1.7B
Total Assets
$2.6B
$7.6B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.42×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$165.1M
$370.0M
Q3 25
$170.0M
$375.0M
Q2 25
$147.0M
$532.2M
Q1 25
$170.6M
$520.8M
Q4 24
$164.6M
$402.0M
Q3 24
$154.4M
$325.8M
Q2 24
$146.8M
$346.5M
Q1 24
$148.3M
$371.3M
Total Debt
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$580.9M
Q3 25
$628.6M
Q2 25
$679.3M
Q1 25
$502.1M
Q4 24
$508.0M
Q3 24
$554.7M
Q2 24
$588.2M
Q1 24
$596.2M
Stockholders' Equity
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$1.4B
$1.7B
Q3 25
$1.3B
$1.7B
Q2 25
$1.3B
$1.8B
Q1 25
$1.2B
$1.7B
Q4 24
$1.1B
$1.6B
Q3 24
$1.1B
$1.5B
Q2 24
$1.0B
$1.4B
Q1 24
$994.8M
$1.4B
Total Assets
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$2.6B
$7.6B
Q3 25
$2.6B
$4.2B
Q2 25
$2.6B
$4.0B
Q1 25
$2.2B
$4.6B
Q4 24
$2.2B
$5.9B
Q3 24
$2.2B
$3.5B
Q2 24
$2.2B
$4.3B
Q1 24
$2.2B
$4.7B
Debt / Equity
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
0.42×
Q3 25
0.48×
Q2 25
0.54×
Q1 25
0.42×
Q4 24
0.44×
Q3 24
0.51×
Q2 24
0.57×
Q1 24
0.60×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$122.4M
$196.1M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$106.0M
$122.6M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
20.8%
22.5%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
3.2%
13.5%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
1.41×
1.72×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$295.4M
$408.0M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$122.4M
$196.1M
Q3 25
$112.5M
$177.8M
Q2 25
$67.2M
$122.5M
Q1 25
$61.8M
$182.5M
Q4 24
$107.9M
$160.4M
Q3 24
$84.3M
$92.8M
Q2 24
$53.3M
$132.1M
Q1 24
$50.9M
$148.6M
Free Cash Flow
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
$106.0M
$122.6M
Q3 25
$100.5M
$79.8M
Q2 25
$37.9M
$60.8M
Q1 25
$51.0M
$144.8M
Q4 24
$93.5M
$109.0M
Q3 24
$70.1M
$44.6M
Q2 24
$39.0M
$86.5M
Q1 24
$39.7M
$100.9M
FCF Margin
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
20.8%
22.5%
Q3 25
21.4%
16.2%
Q2 25
8.0%
12.6%
Q1 25
12.1%
27.3%
Q4 24
18.7%
22.1%
Q3 24
16.2%
9.9%
Q2 24
8.4%
19.8%
Q1 24
9.6%
20.2%
Capex Intensity
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
3.2%
13.5%
Q3 25
2.6%
19.9%
Q2 25
6.2%
12.8%
Q1 25
2.6%
7.1%
Q4 24
2.9%
10.4%
Q3 24
3.3%
10.7%
Q2 24
3.1%
10.4%
Q1 24
2.7%
9.5%
Cash Conversion
MSA
MSA
PAYC
PAYC
Q4 25
1.41×
1.72×
Q3 25
1.62×
1.61×
Q2 25
1.07×
1.37×
Q1 25
1.04×
1.31×
Q4 24
1.23×
1.41×
Q3 24
1.27×
1.27×
Q2 24
0.74×
1.94×
Q1 24
0.88×
0.60×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

MSA
MSA

Americas Segment$335.2M66%
International Segment$175.7M34%

PAYC
PAYC

Recurring$510.3M94%
Interest On Funds Held For Clients$27.2M5%
Implementation And Other$6.8M1%

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