Contrasting Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) and Qfin (NASDAQ:QFIN)

Qfin (NASDAQ:QFIN) and Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Qfin and Atlanticus, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Qfin	4	3	1	0	1.62
Atlanticus	0	2	5	1	2.88

Qfin presently has a consensus target price of $12.29, indicating a potential upside of 120.22%. Atlanticus has a consensus target price of $124.86, indicating a potential upside of 36.86%. Given Qfin’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Qfin is more favorable than Atlanticus.

Volatility and Risk

Qfin has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Atlanticus has a beta of 1.8, suggesting that its share price is 80% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Qfin and Atlanticus’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Qfin	22.23%	15.23%	6.60%
Atlanticus	7.65%	29.05%	2.50%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

74.8% of Qfin shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 14.2% of Atlanticus shares are held by institutional investors. 17.1% of Qfin shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 51.0% of Atlanticus shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Qfin and Atlanticus”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Qfin	$2.75 billion	0.25	$856.52 million	$4.16	1.34
Atlanticus	$1.97 billion	0.70	$122.20 million	$7.69	11.86

Qfin has higher revenue and earnings than Atlanticus. Qfin is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Atlanticus, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Atlanticus beats Qfin on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Qfin

Qifu Technology, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates credit-tech platform under the 360 Jietiao brand in the People's Republic of China. It provides credit-driven services that matches borrowers with financial institutions to conduct customer acquisition, initial and credit screening, advanced risk assessment, credit assessment, fund matching, and other post-facilitation services; and platform services, including loan facilitation and post-facilitation services to financial institution partners under intelligence credit engine, referral services, and risk management software-as-a-service. The company also offers e-commerce loans, enterprise loans, and invoice loans to SME owners. It serves financial institutions, consumers, and small- and micro-enterprises. The company was formerly known as 360 DigiTech, Inc. and changed its name to Qifu Technology, Inc. in March 2023. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China.

About Atlanticus

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a financial technology company, provides credit and related financial services and products to customers the United States. It operates in two segments, Credit as a Service, and Auto Finance. The Credit as a Service segment originates a range of consumer loan products, such as private label and general purpose credit cards originated by lenders through various channels, including retail and healthcare, direct mail solicitation, digital marketing, and partnerships with third parties; and offers credit to their customers for the purchase of various goods and services, including consumer electronics, furniture, elective medical procedures, healthcare, and home-improvements by partnering with retailers, healthcare providers, and other service providers. This segment also offers loan servicing, such as risk management and customer service outsourcing for third parties; and engages in testing and investment activities in consumer finance technology platforms. The Auto Finance segment purchases and/or services loans secured by automobiles from or for a pre-qualified network of independent automotive dealers and automotive finance companies in the buy-here, pay-here, and used car business. This segment also provides floor plan financing and installment lending products. It also invests in and services portfolios of credit card receivables. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.