First Western Financial (MYFW) Competitors

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) and Amerant Bancorp (NASDAQ:AMTB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, valuation, earnings, profitability, dividends, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Which has more risk & volatility, MYFW or AMTB?

First Western Financial has a beta of 0.82, meaning that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Amerant Bancorp has a beta of 1.37, meaning that its stock price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher valuation & earnings, MYFW or AMTB?

First Western Financial has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Amerant Bancorp. Amerant Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Western Financial, 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
First Western Financial	$180.33M	1.16	$8.47M	$1.19	18.13
Amerant Bancorp	$330.31M	2.51	-$15.75M	-$0.20	-99.35

Is MYFW or AMTB more profitable?

First Western Financial has a net margin of 6.50% compared to Amerant Bancorp's net margin of -8.38%. Amerant Bancorp's return on equity of 6.36% beat First Western Financial's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Western Financial	6.50%	4.55%	0.39%
Amerant Bancorp	-8.38%	6.36%	0.51%

Do analysts recommend MYFW or AMTB?

First Western Financial presently has a consensus target price of $24.33, indicating a potential upside of 12.76%. Amerant Bancorp has a consensus target price of $24.25, indicating a potential upside of 22.04%. Given Amerant Bancorp's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Amerant Bancorp is more favorable than First Western Financial.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Western Financial	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67
Amerant Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

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

60.3% of First Western Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.1% of Amerant Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 15.5% of First Western Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Amerant Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media refer more to MYFW or AMTB?

In the previous week, First Western Financial had 4 more articles in the media than Amerant Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for First Western Financial and 0 mentions for Amerant Bancorp. First Western Financial's average media sentiment score of 0.01 beat Amerant Bancorp's score of 0.00 indicating that First Western Financial is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
First Western Financial	Neutral
Amerant Bancorp	Neutral

Summary

First Western Financial beats Amerant Bancorp on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.