Pathward Financial (CASH) Competitors

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) and Pathward Financial (NASDAQ:CASH) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, media sentiment, valuation, risk and analyst recommendations.

Which has stronger earnings and valuation, CATY or CASH?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cathay General Bancorp	$1.39B	2.42	$285.98M	$3.96	12.14
Pathward Financial	$775.94M	2.51	$168.36M	$7.41	11.00

Does the media favor CATY or CASH?

In the previous week, Pathward Financial had 1 more articles in the media than Cathay General Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 9 mentions for Pathward Financial and 8 mentions for Cathay General Bancorp. Pathward Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.17 beat Cathay General Bancorp's score of 1.01 indicating that Pathward Financial is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Cathay General Bancorp	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Pathward Financial	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is CATY or CASH a better dividend stock?

Cathay General Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Pathward Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Cathay General Bancorp pays out 34.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Pathward Financial pays out 2.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Which has more volatility & risk, CATY or CASH?

Cathay General Bancorp has a beta of 0.93, indicating that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pathward Financial has a beta of 0.62, indicating that its share price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts prefer CATY or CASH?

Cathay General Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $50.17, suggesting a potential upside of 4.38%. Pathward Financial has a consensus price target of $91.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.60%. Given Pathward Financial's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Pathward Financial is more favorable than Cathay General Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cathay General Bancorp	1 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33
Pathward Financial	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Do institutionals & insiders hold more shares of CATY or CASH?

75.0% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.7% of Pathward Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 4.9% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Pathward Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Is CATY or CASH more profitable?

Pathward Financial has a net margin of 22.69% compared to Cathay General Bancorp's net margin of 20.55%. Pathward Financial's return on equity of 22.50% beat Cathay General Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cathay General Bancorp	20.55%	10.23%	1.25%
Pathward Financial	22.69%	22.50%	2.43%

Summary

Pathward Financial beats Cathay General Bancorp on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.