WaFd (WAFD) Competitors

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

Which has more risk & volatility, CATY or WAFD?

Cathay General Bancorp has a beta of 0.93, meaning that its stock price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, WaFd has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media refer more to CATY or WAFD?

In the previous week, WaFd had 7 more articles in the media than Cathay General Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 15 mentions for WaFd and 8 mentions for Cathay General Bancorp. Cathay General Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.01 beat WaFd's score of 0.57 indicating that Cathay General Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Cathay General Bancorp	5 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
WaFd	6 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is CATY or WAFD more profitable?

Cathay General Bancorp has a net margin of 20.55% compared to WaFd's net margin of 15.57%. Cathay General Bancorp's return on equity of 10.23% beat WaFd's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cathay General Bancorp	20.55%	10.23%	1.25%
WaFd	15.57%	8.57%	0.85%

Which has higher valuation and earnings, CATY or WAFD?

Cathay General Bancorp has higher earnings, but lower revenue than WaFd. WaFd 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	2.43	$285.98M	$3.96	12.17
WaFd	$1.43B	1.66	$200.04M	$2.63	11.30

Is CATY or WAFD a better dividend stock?

Cathay General Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. WaFd pays an annual dividend of $1.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Cathay General Bancorp pays out 34.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. WaFd pays out 41.1% 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. WaFd has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. WaFd is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do analysts prefer CATY or WAFD?

Cathay General Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $50.17, suggesting a potential upside of 4.08%. WaFd has a consensus price target of $30.50, suggesting a potential upside of 2.59%. Given Cathay General Bancorp's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Cathay General Bancorp is more favorable than WaFd.

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
WaFd	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Do insiders and institutionals believe in CATY or WAFD?

75.0% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.7% of WaFd shares are held by institutional investors. 4.8% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of WaFd shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Cathay General Bancorp beats WaFd on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.