Reviewing Finward Bancorp (OTCMKTS:FNWD) and Metro Bank (OTCMKTS:MBNKF)

Institutional & Insider Ownership

26.6% of Finward Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 13.1% of Finward Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Metro Bank has a beta of 1.34, suggesting that its share price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Finward Bancorp has a beta of 0.31, suggesting that its share price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Metro Bank and Finward Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Metro Bank	$845.12 million	0.28	-$89.92 million	N/A	N/A
Finward Bancorp	$65.86 million	2.26	$15.08 million	$1.91	18.02

Finward Bancorp has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Metro Bank.

Profitability

This table compares Metro Bank and Finward Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Metro Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A
Finward Bancorp	14.46%	10.52%	0.67%

Summary

Finward Bancorp beats Metro Bank on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Metro Bank

Metro Bank Holdings PLC operates as the bank holding company for Metro Bank PLC that provides various banking products and services in the United Kingdom. It offers personal banking products and services, including current, cash, and foreign currency accounts; savings; residential and buy-to-let mortgages; overdrafts; credit cards and personal loans; pet insurance; and safe deposit box services. The company also provides business banking products and services comprising business bank, commercial and community current, foreign currency, and insolvency practitioner accounts; deposit accounts, such as business and community instant access deposit, business notice, client premium and fixed term deposit, and business and community fixed term deposit accounts; insurance products; and business and commercial loans and overdrafts, asset and invoice financing, bounce back loans, business credit cards, and recovery loan schemes. In addition, it offers private banking products and services, such as private bank, savings, foreign currency, and money management accounts; mortgages; credit cards; and partnership loans. The company was founded in 2010 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

About Finward Bancorp

Finward Bancorp operates as the holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company's deposit products include non-interest- and interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market deposit accounts, certificate accounts, and retirement savings plans. Its loan products portfolio comprises residential mortgage loans that enable borrowers to purchase existing homes, refinance existing homes, or construct new homes; construction loans primarily to individuals and contractors; commercial real estate loans; consumer loans to individuals for personal, household, or family purposes; home equity line of credit; home improvement loans and equity loans; commercial business loans; government loans; and loans to municipalities. The company also offers estate and retirement planning, custodial services, guardianships, IRA accounts, and investment agency accounts, as well as serves as the personal representative of estates, and acts as trustee for revocable and irrevocable trusts. In addition, it provides insurance and annuity investments to wealth management customers; holds real estate properties; and operates as a real estate investment trust. The company was formerly known as NorthWest Indiana Bancorp and changed its name to Finward Bancorp in May 2021. Finward Bancorp was founded in 1916 and is headquartered in Munster, Indiana.