Critical Review: Agri Bank China (OTCMKTS:ACGBY) vs. Hang Seng Bank (OTCMKTS:HSNGY)

Agri Bank China (OTCMKTS:ACGBY) and Hang Seng Bank (OTCMKTS:HSNGY) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Agri Bank China and Hang Seng Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Agri Bank China	0	0	0	0	0.00
Hang Seng Bank	1	2	0	0	1.67

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Agri Bank China and Hang Seng Bank”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Agri Bank China	$195.64 billion	1.31	$39.24 billion	$2.70	6.78
Hang Seng Bank	$8.63 billion	4.26	$2.36 billion	N/A	N/A

Agri Bank China has higher revenue and earnings than Hang Seng Bank.

Profitability

This table compares Agri Bank China and Hang Seng Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Agri Bank China	21.14%	9.25%	0.63%
Hang Seng Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Agri Bank China pays an annual dividend of $0.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Hang Seng Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.59 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Agri Bank China pays out 23.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Volatility & Risk

Agri Bank China has a beta of 0.06, indicating that its share price is 94% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hang Seng Bank has a beta of 0.16, indicating that its share price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Agri Bank China beats Hang Seng Bank on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Agri Bank China

Agricultural Bank of China Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides banking products and services. The company operates through Corporate Banking, Personal Banking, and Treasury Operations segments. It offers demand, personal call, foreign currency call, time or demand optional, foreign exchange call, foreign exchange time, savings, agreed term, and negotiated deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; and loans, including housing, consumer, business, fixed asset, working capital, real estate, and entrusted syndicated loans, as well as trade finances, guarantees and commitments, and loans with custody of export rebates accounts. The company provides credit card, debit card, payment and settlement, private banking, cash management, investment banking, custody, financial market, and financial institution services, as well as trading and wealth management services; and personal fund collection and automatic transfer services. In addition, it offers agro-related personal and corporate banking products and services; telephone, mobile, self-service, television, and SMS banking services; financial leasing services; fund management services; asset custodian services; and insurance and reinsurance related products and services. The company operates domestic branches, including specialized institutions, training institutes, tier-1 branches, tier-2 branches, tier-1 sub-branches, foundation-level branch outlets and other establishments; overseas branches in Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, New York, Dubai International Financial Centre, Tokyo, Frankfurt, Sydney, Luxemburg, Dubai, London, Macao, and Hanoi; and overseas representative offices in Vancouver, Taipei, Sao Paulo, and Dushanbe. The company was founded in 1951 and is based in Beijing, the People's Republic of China.

About Hang Seng Bank

Hang Seng Bank Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking and related financial services to individual, corporate, commercial, small and medium-sized enterprises, and institutional customers in Hong Kong, the Mainland of China, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Wealth and Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, Global Banking, Global Markets, and Other. The company offers personal banking services, including current and savings accounts, time deposits, mortgages and personal loans, credit cards, and insurance, investment, and other wealth management services, as well as consumer lending and wealth management services. It also provides corporate lending, trade and receivable finance, payments and cash management, treasury and foreign exchange, general insurance, key-person insurance, investment services, and corporate wealth management services; general banking and transaction banking, corporate lending, deposits, and cash management services; and tailored solutions and services in foreign exchange, bullion, equities, fixed income, and securities financing, as well as manages the funding and liquidity position activities. In addition, the company offers retirement benefits, life assurance, fund management, and stock broking services, as well as index compilation and licensing; fund raising and sales; and asset management services. It operates service outlets in Hong Kong; branches in Macau and Singapore; and representative office in Taipei, as well as a network of outlets in the Mainland of China. The company was founded in 1933 and is headquartered in Central, Hong Kong. Hang Seng Bank Limited operates as a subsidiary of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited.