Financial Contrast: Pathward Financial (NASDAQ:CASH) vs. SouthCrest Financial Group (OTCMKTS:SCSG)

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

Valuation & Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SouthCrest Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Pathward Financial	$715.33 million	2.33	$163.62 million	$6.66	10.03

Pathward Financial has higher revenue and earnings than SouthCrest Financial Group.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.7% of Pathward Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% 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 company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SouthCrest Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Pathward Financial	22.10%	23.59%	2.24%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for SouthCrest Financial Group and Pathward Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SouthCrest Financial Group	0	0	0	0	N/A
Pathward Financial	0	1	1	0	2.50

Pathward Financial has a consensus price target of $71.00, indicating a potential upside of 6.32%. Given Pathward Financial’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Pathward Financial is more favorable than SouthCrest Financial Group.

Summary

Pathward Financial beats SouthCrest Financial Group on 8 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SouthCrest Financial Group

SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for SouthCrest Bank, N.A. that provides various banking products and services. It offers checking, savings, and money market accounts; and certificates of deposit. The company also provides personal loans for cars, boats, recreational vehicles, and other purchases; home equity lines of credit; loans on investment properties; owner occupied real estate, acquisition construction and development, professional practice acquisition, equipment and inventory, construction to permanent, and investment real estate loans; and working capital and lines of credit. In addition, it offers credit cards; remote deposit capture, positive pay, ACH, online wires, merchant, and reorder checks services; and online banking, online bill pay, mobile banking and deposit, and telephone banking services. The company serves retail, private, entrepreneurial, high-net-worth, and commercial customers. It operates through 9 branches in Georgia. SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

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.