Pathward Financial (NASDAQ:CASH) & KB Financial Group (NYSE:KB) Financial Survey

KB Financial Group (NYSE:KB) and Pathward Financial (NASDAQ:CASH) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability and earnings.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

11.5% of KB Financial Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.7% of Pathward Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 69.0% of KB Financial Group shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Pathward Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares KB Financial Group and Pathward Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
KB Financial Group	17.67%	10.11%	0.76%
Pathward Financial	21.03%	20.61%	2.41%

Volatility and Risk

KB Financial Group has a beta of 1.05, suggesting that its stock price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pathward Financial has a beta of 0.66, suggesting that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

KB Financial Group pays an annual dividend of $2.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Pathward Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. KB Financial Group pays out 23.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Pathward Financial pays out 2.5% 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.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares KB Financial Group and Pathward Financial”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
KB Financial Group	$23.41 billion	1.82	$4.04 billion	$11.65	10.32
Pathward Financial	$851.49 million	1.81	$185.87 million	$7.98	9.30

KB Financial Group has higher revenue and earnings than Pathward Financial. Pathward Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than KB Financial Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for KB Financial Group and Pathward Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
KB Financial Group	0	1	2	0	2.67
Pathward Financial	0	0	3	0	3.00

Pathward Financial has a consensus price target of $101.00, indicating a potential upside of 36.12%. Given Pathward Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Pathward Financial is more favorable than KB Financial Group.

About KB Financial Group

KB Financial Group Inc. provides a range of banking and related financial services to consumers and corporations in South Korea, the United States, New Zealand, China, Cambodia, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, and internationally. The company operates through Retail Banking, Corporate Banking, Other Banking Services, Credit Card, Securities, Life Insurance, and Non-Life Insurance segments. It offers loans, deposit products, and other related financial products and services to large, small, medium-sized enterprises, and small office/home office, as well as individuals and households; investment banking, and brokerage and supporting services; life insurance products; non-life insurance products, including fire, maritime, injury, technology, liability, package, title, guarantee, other special type insurances, automobile, long-term nonlife, property damage, injury, driver, savings, illness, nursing, pension, and others; and credit sale, cash service, card loan, and other supporting services. The company also engages in securities and derivatives trading, funding, and other supporting activities. In addition, it offers foreign exchange transaction; financial investment; credit card and installment financing; financial leasing; auto Installment finance; real estate trust management; capital and collective investment; collection of receivables or credit investigation; software advisory, development, and supply; microfinance; investment advisory; claim; management; savings banking; information and communication; e-commerce; and general advisory services. The company was founded in 1963 and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

About Pathward Financial

Pathward Financial, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Pathward, National Association that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer, Commercial, and Corporate Services/Other. It offers demand deposit accounts, savings accounts, and money market savings accounts. The company also provides commercial finance product comprising term lending, asset-based lending, factoring, lease financing, insurance premium finance, government guaranteed lending, and other commercial finance products; consumer credit products; other consumer financing services; tax services, which includes short-term refund advance loans and short-term electronic return originator advance loans; and warehouse financing services. In addition, it issues prepaid cards; and offers payment solutions, such as acceptance, processing, and settlement of credit card and debit card payments. The company was formerly known as Meta Financial Group, Inc. and changed its name to Pathward Financial, Inc. in July 2022. Pathward Financial, Inc. was founded in 1954 and is based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.