Critical Review: X Financial (NYSE:XYF) vs. Lichen International (NASDAQ:LICN)

X Financial (NYSE:XYF) and Lichen International (NASDAQ:LICN) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, dividends and risk.

Risk and Volatility

X Financial has a beta of 0.46, suggesting that its share price is 54% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lichen International has a beta of 1.13, suggesting that its share price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for X Financial and Lichen International, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
X Financial	0	1	0	0	2.00
Lichen International	1	0	0	0	1.00

Profitability

This table compares X Financial and Lichen International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
X Financial	22.75%	24.56%	14.10%
Lichen International	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

1.2% of X Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 31.6% of X Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares X Financial and Lichen International”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
X Financial	$804.43 million	0.27	$210.97 million	$5.66	0.92
Lichen International	$41.48 million	0.04	-$6.14 million	N/A	N/A

X Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Lichen International.

Summary

X Financial beats Lichen International on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About X Financial

X Financial provides personal finance services in the People’s Republic of China. The company offers services as an online marketplace connecting borrowers and investors or institutional funding partners. Its loan products include Xiaoying credit loan, which consists of Xiaoying card loan; and Xiaoying preferred loan to small business owners. The company also offers Xiaoying housing loan, a home equity loan product for property owners; investment products through Xiaoying wealth management platform, such as funds, money market, and insurance products; and loan facilitation services to other platforms. In addition, it engages in the technology development, service, and sale of products; and provision of guarantee and consulting services. The company was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Shenzhen, the People’s Republic of China.

About Lichen International

Lichen China Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an investment holding company, provides financial and taxation, education support, and software and maintenance services in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company offers financial and taxation related management consultation, internal control management consultation, annual or regular consultation, and internal training and general consultation services; and education support services, including marketing, operational, and technical support, as well as sells teaching and learning materials. It also provides Lichen Education Accounting Practice System V1.0, a financial and taxation training software, and academic affairs management system to partnered institutions under the partnership agreements, as well as offers software installation, training, and after sales technical and maintenance support services. Lichen China Limited was founded in 2004 and is based in Jinjiang, China.