Head-To-Head Review: Mizuho Financial Group (NYSE:MFG) vs. Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Mizuho Financial Group (NYSE:MFG) and Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Mizuho Financial Group and Royal Bank Of Canada, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mizuho Financial Group	0	1	0	1	3.00
Royal Bank Of Canada	0	5	11	1	2.76

Royal Bank Of Canada has a consensus price target of $162.00, indicating a potential downside of 4.30%. Given Royal Bank Of Canada’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Royal Bank Of Canada is more favorable than Mizuho Financial Group.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mizuho Financial Group and Royal Bank Of Canada”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mizuho Financial Group	$3,696.66 billion	0.03	$3.92 billion	$0.55	14.47
Royal Bank Of Canada	$98.11 billion	2.42	$14.54 billion	$10.03	16.88

Royal Bank Of Canada has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Mizuho Financial Group. Mizuho Financial Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Royal Bank Of Canada, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Mizuho Financial Group and Royal Bank Of Canada’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mizuho Financial Group	11.57%	9.20%	0.35%
Royal Bank Of Canada	14.83%	16.83%	0.93%

Dividends

Mizuho Financial Group pays an annual dividend of $0.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Royal Bank Of Canada pays an annual dividend of $4.42 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Mizuho Financial Group pays out 25.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Royal Bank Of Canada pays out 44.1% 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. Royal Bank Of Canada has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years. Royal Bank Of Canada is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Volatility and Risk

Mizuho Financial Group has a beta of 0.36, suggesting that its share price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Royal Bank Of Canada has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

3.3% of Mizuho Financial Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 45.3% of Royal Bank Of Canada shares are held by institutional investors. 0.0% of Mizuho Financial Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Royal Bank Of Canada beats Mizuho Financial Group on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mizuho Financial Group

Mizuho Financial Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in banking, trust, securities, and other businesses related to financial services in Japan, the Americas, Europe, Asia/Oceania, and internationally. It operates through Retail & Business Banking Company, Corporate & Institutional Company, Global Corporate Company, Global Markets Company, Asset Management Company, and Others segments. The company provides deposit products; syndicated, housing, and card loans; business matching services; and advisory services related to overseas expansions, and mergers and acquisitions-related services. It also offers consulting services, including asset management and asset succession; payroll services; and sells lottery tickets issued by prefectures and ordinance-designated cities. In addition, it offers fund management, underwriting of equity and bonds, risk hedging products, etc. for corporate customers; solutions based on capital management, business strategy, and financial strategy; real estate services; advisory services and solutions, such as advice on proposals on various investment products to financial institutions; and financial services that include funding support and public bonds underwriting. Further, the company offers corporate finance and transaction banking srvices; sales and trading services; investment products; pension funds; and ALM and investment services, including stable capital raising and balance sheet management, as well as management of fixed income, equity, and other securities portfolios. Additionally, the company provides online banking, cash management solutions, currency transaction, trade finance, custody, yen correspondence settlement, and research and consulting services; trust, securitization and structured finance, and stock transfers; and private banking and information technology-related services. Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

About Royal Bank Of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of wealth, investment, trust, banking, credit, and other advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients; asset management products to institutional and individual clients; and asset and investor services to financial institutions, asset managers, and asset owners. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, property and casualty, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its advice centers, RBC insurance stores, and mobile advisors; digital platforms; and independent brokers and partners. The company's Capital Markets segment offers advisory and origination, sales and trading, lending and financing, and transaction banking services to corporations, institutional clients, asset managers, private equity firms, and governments. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.