Reviewing First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) & Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG)

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) and Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for First BanCorp. and Bankwell Financial Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First BanCorp.	0	3	4	2	2.89
Bankwell Financial Group	0	2	1	1	2.75

First BanCorp. currently has a consensus price target of $29.86, suggesting a potential upside of 10.99%. Bankwell Financial Group has a consensus price target of $67.50, suggesting a potential upside of 0.99%. Given First BanCorp.’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe First BanCorp. is more favorable than Bankwell Financial Group.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

97.9% of First BanCorp. shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 35.8% of Bankwell Financial Group shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of First BanCorp. shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 21.0% of Bankwell Financial Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares First BanCorp. and Bankwell Financial Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First BanCorp.	N/A	N/A	N/A	$2.37	11.35
Bankwell Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	$5.35	12.49

First BanCorp. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Bankwell Financial Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares First BanCorp. and Bankwell Financial Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First BanCorp.	N/A	N/A	N/A
Bankwell Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

First BanCorp. beats Bankwell Financial Group on 5 of the 7 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First BanCorp.

First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations. The Commercial and Corporate Banking segment offers commercial loans, including commercial real estate and construction loans, as well as other products, such as cash management and business management services. The Mortgage Banking segment engages in the origination, sale, and servicing of various residential mortgage loans; hedging activities; and purchase of mortgage loans from branch and mortgage bankers. The Consumer (Retail) Banking segment provides auto loans, finance leases, boat and personal loans, credit card loans, and lines of credit; and interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking and savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts and retail certificates of deposit (CDs), as well as insurance agency services. The Treasury and Investments segment offers funding and liquidity management services. The United States Operations segment provides checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as retail CDs; traditional commercial and industrial, and commercial real estate loans, residential mortgages, term and construction loan, home equity loans, lines of credit, FHLB advances, and brokered CDs; and internet banking, cash management, remote deposit capture, and automated clearing house transactions services. The Virgin Islands Operations segment is involved in consumer, commercial lending, and deposit-taking activities. First BanCorp. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

About Bankwell Financial Group

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Bankwell Bank that provides various banking services for individual and commercial customers. It offers various traditional depository products, including checking, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides first mortgage loans secured by one-to-four family owner occupied residential properties for personal use; home equity loans and home equity lines of credit secured by owner occupied one-to-four family residential properties; loans secured by commercial real estate, multi-family dwellings, owner-occupied commercial real estate, and investor-owned one-to-four family dwellings; commercial construction loans for commercial development projects, including apartment buildings and condominiums, as well as office buildings, retail, and other income producing properties; land loans; commercial business loans secured by assignments of corporate assets and personal guarantees of the business owners; loans to finance insurance premiums; overdraft lines of credit; and unsecured personal loans. It operates branches in New Canaan, Stamford, Fairfield, Westport, Darien, Norwalk, and Hamden, Connecticut. The company was formerly known as BNC Financial Group, Inc. and changed its name to Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. in September 2013. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in New Canaan, Connecticut.