Head to Head Comparison: Monroe Capital (NASDAQ:MRCC) & Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores (NYSE:AVAL)

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores (NYSE:AVAL) and Monroe Capital (NASDAQ:MRCC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores and Monroe Capital”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores	$9.07 billion	0.53	$203.02 million	$0.33	12.36
Monroe Capital	$60.53 million	2.24	$9.70 million	($0.19)	-33.00

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores has higher revenue and earnings than Monroe Capital. Monroe Capital is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores and Monroe Capital’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores	4.61%	5.95%	0.60%
Monroe Capital	-9.58%	8.49%	3.58%

Volatility & Risk

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores has a beta of 0.69, suggesting that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Monroe Capital has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores pays an annual dividend of $0.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Monroe Capital pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.5%. Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores pays out 36.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Monroe Capital pays out -378.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Monroe Capital is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores and Monroe Capital, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores	0	1	1	0	2.50
Monroe Capital	0	2	0	0	2.00

Monroe Capital has a consensus target price of $8.00, indicating a potential upside of 27.59%. Given Monroe Capital’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Monroe Capital is more favorable than Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.2% of Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.8% of Monroe Capital shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

About Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores S.A. provides a range of financial services and products to public and private sector customers in Colombia and Central America. It offers traditional deposit services and products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, time deposits, and other deposits. The company also provides commercial loans comprising general purpose loans, working capital loans, leases, loans funded by development banks, corporate credit cards, and overdraft loans; consumer loans, such as payroll loans, personal loans, automobile and other vehicle loans, credit cards, overdrafts, leases, and general purpose loans; and microcredit and mortgage loans. In addition, the company offers pension and severance fund management services; investment banking, including services relating to capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, and project finance transactions; mobile and online banking services; and bancassurance, insurance, trust, bonded warehousing and brokerage transactions, real estate escrow services, merchandise and document storage and deposit, customs agency, cargo management, surety bond and merchandise distribution services, and payment and collection services. Further, it is involved in equity investments in various sectors, including infrastructure, energy and gas, agribusiness, and hospitality; and treasury operations. The company was incorporated in 1994 and is headquartered in Bogotá, Colombia. Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores S.A.

About Monroe Capital

Monroe Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in customized financing solutions in senior, unitranche and junior secured debt, subordinated debt financing and to a lesser extent, unsecured debt and equity, including equity co-investments in preferred and common stock and warrants. It also provides financing primarily to leveraged buyouts in lower middle-market companies. It focuses to invest in the United States and Canada. The fund prefers to invest in companies with EBITDA between $3 and $35 million. Its makes minority equity investments.