Hawthorn Bancshares (HWBK) Competitors

Amerant Bancorp (NASDAQ:AMTB) and Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability and media sentiment.

Does the media prefer AMTB or HWBK?

In the previous week, Amerant Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.70 beat Hawthorn Bancshares' score of 1.39 indicating that Amerant Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Amerant Bancorp	Very Positive
Hawthorn Bancshares	Positive

Is AMTB or HWBK a better dividend stock?

Amerant Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Hawthorn Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Amerant Bancorp pays out -180.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hawthorn Bancshares pays out 26.9% 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. Hawthorn Bancshares has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Hawthorn Bancshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is AMTB or HWBK more profitable?

Hawthorn Bancshares has a net margin of 18.88% compared to Amerant Bancorp's net margin of -8.38%. Hawthorn Bancshares' return on equity of 13.63% beat Amerant Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Amerant Bancorp	-8.38%	6.36%	0.51%
Hawthorn Bancshares	18.88%	13.63%	1.12%

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in AMTB or HWBK?

42.1% of Amerant Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 30.7% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.4% of Amerant Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 22.7% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Which has better earnings & valuation, AMTB or HWBK?

Hawthorn Bancshares has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Amerant Bancorp. Amerant Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hawthorn Bancshares, 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
Amerant Bancorp	$330.31M	2.69	-$15.75M	-$0.20	-106.43
Hawthorn Bancshares	$109.67M	2.06	$18.26M	$2.97	11.01

Which has more risk and volatility, AMTB or HWBK?

Amerant Bancorp has a beta of 1.37, indicating that its stock price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hawthorn Bancshares has a beta of 0.63, indicating that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate AMTB or HWBK?

Amerant Bancorp presently has a consensus target price of $24.25, suggesting a potential upside of 13.92%. Given Amerant Bancorp's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Amerant Bancorp is more favorable than Hawthorn Bancshares.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Amerant Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Hawthorn Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00

Summary

Amerant Bancorp and Hawthorn Bancshares tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.