Macro Bank (NYSE:BMA) & Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) Head-To-Head Review

Macro Bank (NYSE:BMA) and Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Macro Bank and Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Macro Bank	5.95%	8.65%	2.04%
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	16.27%	9.49%	1.21%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Macro Bank and Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Macro Bank	$4.72 billion	0.80	$231.60 million	$4.57	12.91
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	$935.52 million	3.52	$144.88 million	$1.70	20.00

Macro Bank has higher revenue and earnings than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida. Macro Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Macro Bank has a beta of 1.37, suggesting that its share price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has a beta of 0.9, suggesting that its share price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Macro Bank pays an annual dividend of $3.67 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.2%. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Macro Bank pays out 80.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida pays out 44.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

81.8% of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida shares are held by institutional investors. 18.3% of Macro Bank shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Macro Bank and Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Macro Bank	1	2	4	0	2.43
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	0	2	3	0	2.60

Macro Bank currently has a consensus target price of $101.25, indicating a potential upside of 71.64%. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has a consensus target price of $36.50, indicating a potential upside of 7.35%. Given Macro Bank’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Macro Bank is more favorable than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida.

Summary

Macro Bank beats Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Macro Bank

Banco Macro S.A. provides various banking products and services to retail and corporate customers in Argentina. It offers various retail banking products and services, such as savings and checking accounts, time deposits, credit and debit cards, consumer finance loans, mortgage loans, automobile loans, overdrafts, credit-related services, home and car insurance coverage, tax collection, utility payments, automated teller machines, and money transfers. The company also provides personal loans, document discounts, residential mortgages, overdrafts, pledged loans, and credit card loans to retail customers. In addition, it offers corporate banking products and services, including deposits, lending, check cashing advances and factoring, guaranteed loans, credit lines for financing foreign trade, and cash management services; and trust, payroll, and financial agency services, as well as corporate credit cards and other specialty products; and working capital facilities, credit for investment projects, and leasing and foreign trade transactions. Further, the company provides transaction services, such as cash management, collection services, payments to suppliers, payroll services, foreign exchange transactions, and foreign trade services; information services comprising Datanet and Interpymes services to corporate customers; and Internet and mobile banking services. Additionally, it offers short-term and medium-to-long-term corporate lending products. Banco Macro S.A. was incorporated in 1966 and is headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

About Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida is a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of integrated financial services. It provides banking and investment services to businesses and consumers, including personal and business deposit products, Internet and mobile banking, personal, commercial and mortgage loans, wealth management services, and treasury management solutions. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Stuart, FL.