Comparing Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD) & Southern States Bancshares (NASDAQ:SSBK)

Southern States Bancshares (NASDAQ:SSBK) and Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

58.7% of Southern States Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 14.8% of Southern States Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Banco Bradesco shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Southern States Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Banco Bradesco pays an annual dividend of $0.03 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Southern States Bancshares pays out 10.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Banco Bradesco pays out 11.5% 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.

Profitability

This table compares Southern States Bancshares and Banco Bradesco’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Southern States Bancshares	19.33%	14.88%	1.32%
Banco Bradesco	7.43%	10.17%	0.86%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Southern States Bancshares and Banco Bradesco”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Southern States Bancshares	$94.58 million	3.45	$31.95 million	$3.55	10.32
Banco Bradesco	$39.41 billion	N/A	$2.85 billion	$0.26	9.15

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Southern States Bancshares and Banco Bradesco, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Southern States Bancshares	0	0	2	0	3.00
Banco Bradesco	0	2	1	0	2.33

Southern States Bancshares presently has a consensus price target of $35.50, suggesting a potential downside of 3.08%. Banco Bradesco has a consensus price target of $3.20, suggesting a potential upside of 34.45%. Given Banco Bradesco’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Banco Bradesco is more favorable than Southern States Bancshares.

Risk & Volatility

Southern States Bancshares has a beta of 0.21, indicating that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Banco Bradesco has a beta of 0.97, indicating that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Southern States Bancshares beats Banco Bradesco on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Southern States Bancshares

Southern States Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Southern States Bank that provides community banking services to businesses and individuals. The company provides various deposit products, such as savings, money market, and noninterest-bearing demand accounts; certificates of deposit; and time deposits. It offers real estate loan products, including loans for real estate construction and development, residential mortgages, and commercial real estate mortgage loans; commercial and industrial loans; and direct consumer installment loans, overdrafts, and other revolving credit loans. In addition, it offers online and mobile banking, and ATM services. Southern States Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Anniston, Alabama.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services. Banco Bradesco S.A. was founded in 1943 and is headquartered in Osasco, Brazil.