Contrasting Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) and Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN)

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) and Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Alerus Financial and Coinbase Global’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Alerus Financial	4.36%	13.18%	1.34%
Coinbase Global	17.55%	8.68%	4.36%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Alerus Financial and Coinbase Global”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Alerus Financial	$399.92 million	1.62	$17.44 million	$0.66	38.38
Coinbase Global	$7.18 billion	7.21	$1.26 billion	$4.39	44.64

Coinbase Global has higher revenue and earnings than Alerus Financial. Alerus Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coinbase Global, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Alerus Financial and Coinbase Global, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Alerus Financial	0	6	0	1	2.29
Coinbase Global	3	11	19	0	2.48

Alerus Financial presently has a consensus price target of $26.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.65%. Coinbase Global has a consensus price target of $262.07, indicating a potential upside of 33.75%. Given Coinbase Global’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Coinbase Global is more favorable than Alerus Financial.

Volatility & Risk

Alerus Financial has a beta of 0.59, meaning that its stock price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Coinbase Global has a beta of 3.6, meaning that its stock price is 260% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

51.3% of Alerus Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 68.8% of Coinbase Global shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.3% of Alerus Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.6% of Coinbase Global shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Coinbase Global beats Alerus Financial on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Alerus Financial

Alerus Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Alerus Financial, National Association that engages in the provision of various financial services to businesses and consumers. The company operates in four segments: Banking, Mortgage, Retirement and Benefit Services, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, time and savings deposits, checking accounts, and certificates of deposit; and treasury management products, including electronic receivables management, remote deposit capture, cash vault services, merchant services, and other cash management services. The company also provides commercial loans, business term loans, lines of credit, and commercial real estate loans, as well as construction and land development loans; consumer lending products, including residential first mortgage loans; installment loans and lines of credit; and second mortgage loans. In addition, it offers retirement plan administration and investment advisory services, employee stock ownership plan, fiduciary services, payroll, health savings accounts, and other benefit services, as well as individual retirement accounts; and financial planning, investment management, personal and corporate trust, estate administration, and custody services. Further, the company provides debit and credit cards, online banking, mobile banking/wallet, payment, private banking, payroll accounts, flex spending accounts, administration, and government health insurance program services. It offers banking services in North Dakota, Minnesota, and Arizona; and retirement and benefit plans through offices located in Michigan, Minnesota, and Colorado. The company was formerly known as First National Bank North Dakota and changed its name to Alerus Financial Corporation in 2000. Alerus Financial Corporation was founded in 1879 and is headquartered in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

About Coinbase Global

Coinbase Global, Inc. provides financial infrastructure and technology for the crypto economy in the United States and internationally. The company offers the primary financial account in the crypto economy for consumers; and a marketplace with a pool of liquidity for transacting in crypto assets for institutions. It also provides technology and services that enable developers to build crypto products and securely accept crypto assets as payment. The company was founded in 2012 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.