Banco Santander (BNC) Competitors

Banco Santander (LON:BNC) and HSBC (LON:HSBA) are both large-cap financial services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, media sentiment and profitability.

Does the media prefer BNC or HSBA?

In the previous week, HSBC had 14 more articles in the media than Banco Santander. MarketBeat recorded 16 mentions for HSBC and 2 mentions for Banco Santander. Banco Santander's average media sentiment score of 1.30 beat HSBC's score of 0.36 indicating that Banco Santander is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Banco Santander	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
HSBC	2 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	8 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Is BNC or HSBA a better dividend stock?

Banco Santander pays an annual dividend of GBX 21 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. HSBC pays an annual dividend of GBX 0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.1%. Banco Santander pays out 25.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. HSBC pays out 0.6% 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.

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, BNC or HSBA?

HSBC has higher revenue and earnings than Banco Santander. Banco Santander is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than HSBC, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Banco Santander	£63.56B	1.70	£14.20B	£82.80	8.83
HSBC	£69.07B	2.51	£29.03B	£101.00	9.94

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in BNC or HSBA?

30.0% of Banco Santander shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 28.2% of HSBC shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.0% of Banco Santander shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of HSBC shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is BNC or HSBA more profitable?

HSBC has a net margin of 34.63% compared to Banco Santander's net margin of 20.05%. Banco Santander's return on equity of 12.99% beat HSBC's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Banco Santander	20.05%	12.99%	0.73%
HSBC	34.63%	12.54%	0.80%

Which has more volatility and risk, BNC or HSBA?

Banco Santander has a beta of 1.32, meaning that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HSBC has a beta of 0.52, meaning that its share price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate BNC or HSBA?

HSBC has a consensus price target of GBX 997.50, suggesting a potential downside of 0.62%. Given HSBC's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe HSBC is more favorable than Banco Santander.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Banco Santander	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00
HSBC	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33

Summary

HSBC beats Banco Santander on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.