Critical Review: Imation (OTCMKTS:GLAE) and Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI)

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI) and Imation (OTCMKTS:GLAE) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance and Imation, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance	1	1	2	0	2.25
Imation	0	0	0	0	0.00

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance presently has a consensus price target of $18.00, suggesting a potential upside of 40.63%. Given Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance is more favorable than Imation.

Risk and Volatility

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has a beta of 0.22, meaning that its share price is 78% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Imation has a beta of 7.33, meaning that its share price is 633% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

25.5% of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance shares are held by institutional investors. 8.3% of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 9.2% of Imation shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance and Imation’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance	64.78%	11.94%	8.55%
Imation	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance and Imation”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance	$54.95 million	4.91	$37.04 million	$1.69	7.57
Imation	$100,000.00	8.40	-$3.00 million	N/A	N/A

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has higher revenue and earnings than Imation.

Summary

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance beats Imation on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. operates as a commercial real estate finance company in the United States. The company engages in originating, structuring, and investing in first mortgage loans and alternative structured financings secured by commercial real estate properties. Its portfolio primarily includes offers senior loans to state-licensed operators in the cannabis industry. The company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT) and would not be subject to federal corporate income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. was incorporated in 2021 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

About Imation

GlassBridge Enterprises, Inc., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates an asset management business in the United States. It offers investment advisory services to third party investors through managed funds separate managed accounts. The company was formerly known as Imation Corp. and changed its name to GlassBridge Enterprises, Inc. in February 2017. GlassBridge Enterprises, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in New York, New York.