EFG International (OTCMKTS:EFGXY) versus Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Head to Head Analysis

EFG International (OTCMKTS:EFGXY) and Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) are both financial services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Dividends

EFG International pays an annual dividend of C$0.18 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Bank of Montreal pays an annual dividend of $4.53 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.4%. EFG International pays out 128.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Bank of Montreal pays out 75.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Bank of Montreal is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for EFG International and Bank of Montreal, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
EFG International	0	0	0	0	N/A
Bank of Montreal	0	6	3	0	2.33

Bank of Montreal has a consensus target price of $124.00, indicating a potential upside of 48.86%. Given Bank of Montreal’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Bank of Montreal is more favorable than EFG International.

Profitability

This table compares EFG International and Bank of Montreal’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
EFG International	N/A	N/A	N/A
Bank of Montreal	8.25%	11.60%	0.62%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares EFG International and Bank of Montreal’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
EFG International	N/A	N/A	N/A	C$0.14	98.23
Bank of Montreal	$33.85 billion	1.79	$3.24 billion	$6.02	13.84

Bank of Montreal has higher revenue and earnings than EFG International. Bank of Montreal is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EFG International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

45.8% of Bank of Montreal shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.0% of Bank of Montreal 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.

Summary

Bank of Montreal beats EFG International on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About EFG International

EFG International AG, together with its subsidiaries, provides private banking, wealth management, and asset management services. The company offers investment solutions, including discretionary mandates, structured products, and trading services; wealth planning and trust services; credit and financing services, such as Islamic, property, and investment financing; and eBanking services, including mobile banking and security services. It also provides other banking services consisting of custody, foreign exchange and treasury, and trading services, as well as accounts and cards, and metals; and supports independent asset managers to set up private label funds. The company operates in Europe, Asia Pacific, the Americas, and the Middle East. EFG International AG was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.

About Bank of Montreal

Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. It operates through Canadian P&C, U.S P&C, BMO Wealth Management, and BMO Capital Markets segments. The company’s personal banking products and services include deposits, mortgages, home lending, consumer credit, small business lending, credit cards, cash management, financial and investment advice, and other banking services; and commercial banking products and services comprise various of financing options and treasury and payment solutions, as well as risk management products. It also offers investing, banking, and wealth management advisory; digital investing services; financial solutions for individuals, families, and businesses; provides investment management services to institutional, retail, and high net worth investors; and diversified insurance, and wealth and pension de-risking solutions. In addition, the company provides individual life, critical illness and annuity products, as well as segregated funds, and group creditor and travel insurance to customers; debt and equity capital-raising, loan origination and syndication, balance sheet management, treasury management, mergers and acquisitions advice, restructurings and recapitalizations, trade finance, and risk mitigation services, as well as a range of banking and other operating services. Further, the company offers research and access to financial markets for institutional, corporate and retail clients through an integrated suite of sales and trading solutions related to debt, foreign exchange, interest rates, credit, equities, securitization, and commodities; provides new product development and origination services, as well as risk management and advisory services for hedging strategies, including in interest rates, foreign exchange rates and commodities prices; and funding and liquidity management services. The company was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.