Contrasting Amalgamated Financial (NASDAQ:AMAL) & Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN)

Amalgamated Financial (NASDAQ:AMAL) and Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and earnings.

Dividends

Amalgamated Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Benchmark Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Amalgamated Financial pays out 14.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Profitability

This table compares Amalgamated Financial and Benchmark Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Amalgamated Financial	24.19%	16.00%	1.24%
Benchmark Bankshares	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

75.9% of Amalgamated Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.2% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Amalgamated Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 14.0% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Amalgamated Financial and Benchmark Bankshares”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Amalgamated Financial	$311.12 million	3.30	$87.98 million	$3.40	9.84
Benchmark Bankshares	$62.25 million	1.86	$15.38 million	N/A	N/A

Amalgamated Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Benchmark Bankshares.

Risk & Volatility

Amalgamated Financial has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Benchmark Bankshares has a beta of 0.3, indicating that its share price is 70% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Amalgamated Financial and Benchmark Bankshares, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Amalgamated Financial	0	0	3	0	3.00
Benchmark Bankshares	0	0	0	0	0.00

Amalgamated Financial currently has a consensus target price of $39.83, indicating a potential upside of 19.01%. Given Amalgamated Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Amalgamated Financial is more favorable than Benchmark Bankshares.

Summary

Amalgamated Financial beats Benchmark Bankshares on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Amalgamated Financial

Amalgamated Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Amalgamated Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, investment management, and trust and custody services for commercial and retail customers in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including non-interest bearing accounts, interest-bearing demand products, savings accounts, money market accounts, NOW accounts, and certificates of deposit. It also provides various commercial loans comprising commercial and industrial, multifamily mortgage, and commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; and retail loans, such as residential real estate, consumer solar, and consumer and other loans. In addition, the company offers online banking, bill payment, online cash management, and safe deposit box rental services; debit and ATM cards; and trust, custody, and investment management services comprising asset safekeeping, corporate actions, income collections, proxy, account transition, asset transfers, and conversion management services. Further, it provides investment products, such as funds spanning equity, fixed-income, real estate, and alternative investment products; and brokerage, asset management, and insurance products. Amalgamated Financial Corp. was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

About Benchmark Bankshares

Benchmark Bankshares, Inc. operates as the holding company for Benchmark Community Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, such as checking, saving, commercial services, and youth accounts. Its loan products include personal, mortgage, other real estate, business, auto, and student loans. The company also offers credit and debit cards; wealth management services comprising financial solutions, financial and retirement planning, and portfolio management, as well as estate, charitable giving, and trust services; and reorder checks, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, bill pay, and internet and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1971 and is based in Kenbridge, Virginia.