Comparing UniCredit (OTCMKTS:UNCRY) and Barclays (NYSE:BCS)

UniCredit (OTCMKTS:UNCRY) and Barclays (NYSE:BCS) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, risk and valuation.

Dividends

UniCredit pays an annual dividend of $1.35 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Barclays pays an annual dividend of $0.58 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Barclays pays out 24.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares UniCredit and Barclays”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
UniCredit	$41.32 billion	3.03	$15.35 billion	N/A	N/A
Barclays	$38.42 billion	2.13	$9.46 billion	$2.40	9.87

UniCredit has higher revenue and earnings than Barclays.

Profitability

This table compares UniCredit and Barclays’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
UniCredit	34.34%	20.22%	1.60%
Barclays	21.10%	8.12%	0.39%

Risk and Volatility

UniCredit has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Barclays has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.3% of UniCredit shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.4% of Barclays shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Barclays shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for UniCredit and Barclays, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
UniCredit	1	1	3	2	2.86
Barclays	0	4	3	0	2.43

Summary

UniCredit beats Barclays on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About UniCredit

UniCredit S.p.A. provides commercial banking services in Italy, Germany, Central Europe, and Eastern Europe. It offers retail, private, and wealth management solutions; and institutional investor solutions. The company also provides corporate finance advisory, rating advisory, financial sponsor, patient capital, capital structure advisory, and finance solutions, as well as securities services. In addition, it offers transactional and risk management, and strategic advisory and funding services; group trade and correspondent banking services; and payments and cash management solutions. The company serves SME, corporate, multinational corporate, financial institution, and public sector clients, as well as retail, private banking, wealth management, and family office clients. The company was founded in 1870 and is headquartered in Milan, Italy.

About Barclays

Barclays PLC provides various financial services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company operates through Barclays UK and Barclays International division segments. It offers financial services, such as retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services. In addition, the company engages in securities dealing activities. The company was formerly known as Barclays Bank Limited and changed its name to Barclays PLC in January 1985. Barclays PLC was founded in 1690 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.