Head to Head Review: SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) and Amerant Bancorp (NYSE:AMTB)

SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) and Amerant Bancorp (NYSE:AMTB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation and risk.

Profitability

This table compares SmartFinancial and Amerant Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SmartFinancial	12.67%	7.33%	0.71%
Amerant Bancorp	0.60%	7.12%	0.63%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares SmartFinancial and Amerant Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SmartFinancial	$190.00 million	3.18	$36.14 million	$2.74	12.96
Amerant Bancorp	$605.50 million	1.21	-$15.75 million	($0.20)	-87.45

SmartFinancial has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Amerant Bancorp. Amerant Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SmartFinancial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for SmartFinancial and Amerant Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SmartFinancial	0	4	0	1	2.40
Amerant Bancorp	1	0	0	0	1.00

SmartFinancial currently has a consensus price target of $38.50, indicating a potential upside of 8.39%. Given SmartFinancial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe SmartFinancial is more favorable than Amerant Bancorp.

Volatility & Risk

SmartFinancial has a beta of 0.8, indicating that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Amerant Bancorp has a beta of 1.3, indicating that its stock price is 30% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

SmartFinancial pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Amerant Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. SmartFinancial pays out 11.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Amerant Bancorp pays out -180.0% 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. SmartFinancial has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Amerant Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

58.8% of SmartFinancial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.1% of Amerant Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 7.6% of SmartFinancial shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Amerant Bancorp shares are held by company 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

SmartFinancial beats Amerant Bancorp on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SmartFinancial

SmartFinancial, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for SmartBank that provides various financial services to individuals and corporate customers in Tennessee, Alabama, and Florida. It operates through Commercial Real Estate, Consumer Real Estate, Construction and Land Development, Commercial and Industrial, Leases, and Consumer and Other segments. The company offers noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing checking, interest-bearing demand, savings, money market, time deposit, individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also provides commercial and residential real estate, consumer real estate, and construction and land development loans; commercial and financial loans and leases; commercial business and mortgage loans; and direct consumer installment, educational, agriculture, and other revolving credit loans; equipment financing, heavy equipment, semis, and trailers loans and leases to small and mid-size companies; letters of credit; and overdraft facilities. In addition, the company offers wealth management, insurance, mortgage origination, and internet and mobile banking services. SmartFinancial, Inc. is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee.

About Amerant Bancorp

Amerant Bancorp Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Amerant Bank, N.A. that provides banking products and services to individuals and businesses in the United States and internationally. The company offers checking, savings, and money market accounts; and certificates of deposits. It also provides variable and fixed rate commercial real estate loans; loans secured by owner-occupied properties; loans to domestic and foreign individuals primarily secured by personal residence; working capital loans, asset-based lending, participations in shared national credits, purchased receivables, and small business administration loans; loans to financial institutions and acceptances; and consumer loans and overdrafts, such as automobile, personal, or loans secured by cash or securities and revolving credit card agreements. In addition, the company offers trust and estate planning products and services to high-net-worth customers, brokerage and investment advisory services in global capital markets, and wealth management and fiduciary services. Further, it provides debit and credit cards, night depositories, direct deposits, cashier’s checks, safe deposit boxes, letters of credit, and treasury management services, including wire transfer, remote deposit capture, and automated clearinghouse services; derivative instruments; and online and mobile banking, account balances, statements and other documents, online transfers and bill payment, and electronic delivery of customer statements services, as well as automated teller machines, and banking by mobile devices, telephone, and mail. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated 24 banking centers comprising 17 in Florida and 7 in Texas. It also operates loan production offices in Tampa, Florida. The company was formerly known as Mercantil Bank Holding Corporation and changed its name to Amerant Bancorp Inc. in June 2019. Amerant Bancorp Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida.