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    Rufus Hone

    Managing Director and Senior Equity Analyst at BMO Capital Markets

    Rufus Hone is a Managing Director and Senior Equity Analyst at BMO Capital Markets, specializing in Financial Services, Technology, and Industrials, with active coverage of companies like Visa, Repay Holdings Corp, Remitly Global, and AvidXchange Holdings. Hone has issued over 200 stock ratings across 31 companies, maintaining a success rate around 69% and an average return exceeding 15%, with standout calls generating returns of over 90% on specific recommendations. Beginning his research career in 2016, he joined BMO Capital Markets thereafter and has earned recognition as a 4.5-star analyst on platforms such as TipRanks and StockAnalysis. He holds relevant industry credentials and regularly participates in earnings calls for covered firms, demonstrating expertise and professional rigor.

    Rufus Hone's questions to Repay Holdings (RPAY) leadership

    Rufus Hone's questions to Repay Holdings (RPAY) leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone asked for a more detailed explanation of the organic gross profit growth deceleration from Q3 to Q4 and whether new client ramps provided any material offsetting benefits.

    Answer

    CFO Tim Murphy attributed the deceleration primarily to the client losses and the strategic AP volume migration, with some additional softness in the AR portion of the B2B segment. He stated that normalized growth would be more in line with early 2024 levels. Murphy also noted that while a new auto captive client is ramping, it did not materially offset the other negative impacts in the quarter.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Repay Holdings (RPAY) leadership • Q3 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone asked for a quantification of the factors that caused the deceleration in organic gross profit growth from Q2 to Q3, excluding political media, and requested a bridge from the Q3 core growth rate to the Q4 outlook.

    Answer

    CFO Tim Murphy provided a breakdown of the growth headwinds. He attributed a couple of percentage points of impact to the RCS client loss, another 2-3 points to general consumer spending softness, about one point to enterprise client implementation delays, and another 1-2 points to corporate spending softness within the B2B segment. This combination explains the bridge from the normalized growth rate in the first half of the year to the rate seen in Q3.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Repay Holdings (RPAY) leadership • Q2 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone of BMO Capital Markets sought clarity on the organic gross profit growth outlook for the second half of the year, asking for specific reasons behind the deceleration from Q1 to Q2.

    Answer

    CFO Tim Murphy attributed the deceleration to lapping a large client and some implementation delays with enterprise clients, such as the auto captive. He noted that while the current run-rate is consistent with guidance, multi-year growth opportunities like the auto captive and mortgage debit are expected to drive future acceleration.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Remitly Global (RELY) leadership

    Rufus Hone's questions to Remitly Global (RELY) leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone asked if foreign exchange was a tailwind in Q4, how FX is factored into the 2025 outlook, and whether the guided 150 basis points of annual margin expansion is a sustainable medium-term pace.

    Answer

    CFO Vikas Mehta stated that Q4 FX tailwinds from a strong USD were offset by headwinds from a weaker Canadian dollar and other currencies, resulting in no net impact due to diversification. He confirmed the 2025 guidance prudently assumes no FX movements. Regarding margin expansion, he emphasized the vast market opportunity and the strategic priority to invest in long-term growth rather than committing to a specific annual expansion rate.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Remitly Global (RELY) leadership • Q3 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone inquired about the long-term adjusted EBITDA margin potential and the anticipated pace of margin expansion for 2025 and beyond, following the strong performance in Q3.

    Answer

    CEO Matt Oppenheimer stated that as a digital payments business, Remitly has significant leverage across the P&L as it scales, which is driving profitability. He expressed excitement about the long-term margin optionality. CFO Vikas Mehta reiterated that Remitly is a growth company focused on disciplined capital allocation and long-term value, but declined to provide specific 2025 EBITDA margin goals at this time.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Western Union (WU) leadership

    Rufus Hone's questions to Western Union (WU) leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone from BMO Capital Markets asked about the performance of the retail business excluding Iraq, which he calculated was down approximately 3% year-over-year, and inquired about its expected trend through 2025.

    Answer

    CEO Devin McGranahan and CFO Matt Hagan acknowledged the figure but framed it within a broader context of significant improvement. They highlighted that the retail business has seen a 500 basis point improvement in its transaction trend over two years, moving from high-single-digit declines to low-single-digit declines. They attributed the recent pressure to softness in the Americas but pointed to underlying strength and positive trends in Europe, the Middle East, and APAC as reasons for optimism about the continued upward trajectory.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to Western Union (WU) leadership • Q3 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone asked about the competitive and pricing landscape in the digital business and whether the company sees an opportunity to increase marketing spend to pressure smaller competitors.

    Answer

    CEO Devin McGranahan explained their marketing approach is highly disciplined, governed by a lifetime value to customer acquisition cost (LTV to CAC) model. He noted that the current higher interest rate environment is straining smaller, less-capitalized players, which creates market opportunities and fosters more rational pricing behavior that benefits a scaled and disciplined operator like Western Union.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to i3 Verticals (IIIV) leadership

    Rufus Hone's questions to i3 Verticals (IIIV) leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone questioned the drivers of the expected organic growth acceleration from 2% in Q4 to the implied 7.5% in FY25, and asked if the weak Healthcare outlook was solely due to consolidation.

    Answer

    Executive Clay Whitson attributed the growth acceleration to several factors: new growth from the large Midwestern utility customer, the education vertical returning to normal growth after lapping one-time setbacks, the SaaS transition headwind leveling out, and the resumption of the delayed Manitoba project. He also confirmed that ongoing industry consolidation is the primary headwind affecting the Healthcare segment's growth.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to AvidXchange Holdings (AVDX) leadership

    Rufus Hone's questions to AvidXchange Holdings (AVDX) leadership • Q3 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone asked about the progress towards the 80% gross margin target, specifically regarding benefits from AI and automation and whether these tailwinds are diminishing.

    Answer

    CFO Joel Wilhite confirmed the path to 80% involves both yield expansion and unit cost discipline. He highlighted a year-over-year reduction in non-GAAP cost of revenue per transaction (from $1.54 to $1.43), driven by standardization, automation, and AI. He stated that while progress is strong, they are 'not done' and expect continued, though not necessarily linear, margin expansion.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to AvidXchange Holdings (AVDX) leadership • Q2 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone of BMO Capital Markets asked for a breakdown of the full-year revenue guidance reduction, questioning how much was due to a tougher macro environment versus incremental lead generation headwinds.

    Answer

    CFO Joel Wilhite clarified that the guidance reduction for the second half of the year is driven by projecting forward the trends seen in Q2. He attributed the change to a roughly 50/50 split between two factors: continued moderation in customer spending (volume) and the lighter transaction yield dynamic. He noted that sales funnel activity impacts future revenue, not the current year's.

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    Rufus Hone's questions to AvidXchange Holdings (AVDX) leadership • Q1 2024

    Question

    Rufus Hone questioned the implied EBITDA margin for the rest of the year, which appears to step down from Q1 levels, asking if this is due to lower float income or planned incremental investments.

    Answer

    CEO Michael Praeger acknowledged potential quarter-to-quarter variability in margins. He pointed to a few million dollars of planned sequential investment increases in Q2, particularly in R&D and sales & marketing. However, he affirmed the company's full-year expectation for continued operating leverage and EBITDA margin expansion.

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