Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC – Get Rating) and Equitable Financial (OTCMKTS:EQFN – Get Rating) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
54.9% of Eastern Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 7.4% of Equitable Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Eastern Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 11.3% of Equitable Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Eastern Bankshares and Equitable Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Eastern Bankshares | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.50 |
| Equitable Financial | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Eastern Bankshares and Equitable Financial’s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Eastern Bankshares | $737.83 million | 2.53 | $199.76 million | ($0.30) | -35.23 |
| Equitable Financial | $22.78 million | 1.37 | $4.59 million | N/A | N/A |
Eastern Bankshares has higher revenue and earnings than Equitable Financial.
Profitability
This table compares Eastern Bankshares and Equitable Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Eastern Bankshares | 25.57% | 8.65% | 0.98% |
| Equitable Financial | N/A | -1.76% | -0.16% |
Volatility and Risk
Eastern Bankshares has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equitable Financial has a beta of 0.41, meaning that its stock price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Eastern Bankshares beats Equitable Financial on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Eastern Bankshares
Eastern Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Eastern Bank that provides banking products and services primarily to retail, commercial, and small business customers. It operates in two segments, Banking Business and Insurance Agency Business. The company provides interest-bearing and non interest-bearing checking deposits, money market deposits, savings deposits, and time certificates of deposits, as well as debit and credit cards. It also offers commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate and construction loans, small business loans, residential real estate loans, home equity, and lines of credit, as well as other consumer loans comprising unsecured personal lines of credit, overdraft protection, automobile loans, home improvement loans, airplane loans, and other personal loans. In addition, the company provides cash reserves, cash management, merchant, escrow express, government banking, international banking, interest on lawyers trust accounts, retirement planning, and business telephone banking services, as well as products and services for not-for-profit and healthcare. Further, it offers trust and investment products and services; community development and asset-based lending services; financial planning, portfolio management, wealth management, private banking, and fiduciary products; online, mobile, and telephone banking services; and automated lock box collection and account reconciliation services, as well as various insurance products. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated 105 branch offices in eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire; and 23 non-branch offices in eastern Massachusetts, one office in New Hampshire, and one office in Rhode Island. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. was founded in 1818 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
About Equitable Financial
Equitable Financial Corp. operates as a holding company. Through its subsidiary Equitable Bank, it provides personal and business banking, and wealth management. The firm operates through the following portfolio segments: Commercial, Agricultural, Residential Real Estate, and Other. Equitable Financial was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Grand Island, NE.
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