Sifting through countless of stocks in the Banks industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc

Banco Santander, S.A. provides various financial products and services to individuals, small and medium-sized enterprises, large corporations, and public entities worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and Payments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services. The company also provides credit and debit cards, real estate loans, microfinance, and auto loans; corporate and investment banking services; advice on mergers and acquisitions; wealth, asset, and risk management services; and digital payments and technology solutions. In addition, it is involved in the securitization, leasing, management of portfolios, e-commerce, air transport, aircraft rental, software, consulting, fund and investment management, renewable energy, vehicle rental, insurance, advertising, marketing, telemarketing, automotive, agricultural, factoring, securities brokerage and investment, pension fund management, trade intermediary, venture capital fund, renting, restaurant, electricity production, IT, internet, and financial advisory and other activities; management, and other real estate activities; and purchase and sale of vehicles. Further, the company offers mobile and online banking services. Banco Santander, S.A. was formerly known as Banco Santander Central Hispano SA and changed its name to Banco Santander, S.A. in February 2007. The company was incorporated in 1856 and is headquartered in Madrid, Spain.

HSBC Holdings plc engages in the provision of banking and financial products and services worldwide. It operates through four segments: Hong Kong, UK, Corporate and Institutional Banking, and International Wealth and Premier Banking. The Hong Kong segment is involved in the retail banking and wealth and commercial banking of HSBC Hong Kong and Hang Seng Bank. The UK segment engages in UK retail banking and wealth, as well as first direct and M&S Bank, UK Commercial Banking, and HSBC Innovation Bank. The Corporate and Institutional Banking segment is involved in transaction banking and capital markets. The International Wealth and Premier Banking segment is involved in the business comprising premier banking outside of Hong Kong and the UK, its private bank, asset management, and insurance businesses. The company was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Latest Banks and Banco Santander, S.A., HSBC Holdings plc Stock News

As of July 21, 2026, Banco Santander, S.A. had a $194.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Banks median of $687.0 million. Banco Santander, S.A.’s stock is up 17.4% in 2026, down 0.4% in the previous five trading days and up 61.73% in the past year.

Currently, Banco Santander, S.A.’s price-earnings ratio is 14.1. Banco Santander, S.A.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $54.6 billion with a 34.1% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 11.6%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.143 per share for the current fiscal year. Banco Santander, S.A. currently has a 2.1% dividend yield.

As of July 21, 2026, HSBC Holdings plc had a $347.9 billion market cap, putting it in the 99th percentile of all stocks. HSBC Holdings plc’s stock is up 31.4% in 2026, up 2.9% in the previous five trading days and up 60.97% in the past year.

Currently, HSBC Holdings plc’s price-earnings ratio is 83.7. HSBC Holdings plc’s trailing 12-month revenue is $63.8 billion with a 35.0% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 3.3%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $8.860 per share for the current fiscal year. HSBC Holdings plc currently has a 2.0% dividend yield.

How We Compare Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Banco Santander, S.A.	SAN	C
HSBC Holdings plc	HSBC	F

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Banco Santander, S.A. has a Value Score of 45, which is Average. HSBC Holdings plc has a Value Score of 15, which is Ultra Expensive.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc is the better investment when it comes to value.

Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Banco Santander, S.A.	SAN	F
HSBC Holdings plc	HSBC	D

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Banco Santander, S.A. has a Quality Score of 5, which is Very Weak. HSBC Holdings plc has a Quality Score of 25, which is Weak.

The Quality Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc has a high enough Quality Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc is the better investment when it comes to quality.

Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
Banco Santander, S.A.	SAN	B
HSBC Holdings plc	HSBC	B

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Banco Santander, S.A. has a Momentum Score of 78, which is Strong. HSBC Holdings plc has a Momentum Score of 78, which is Strong.

The Momentum Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Momentum Grade breakdown above, both Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc have a grade of B. For those who focus solely on a company’s momentum, further research will need to be conducted into both companies to see if they fit your individual needs as an investor.

Other Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc Grades

In addition to Value, Quality and Momentum, A+ Investor also provides grades for Growth and Estimate Revisions.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Banco Santander, S.A. or HSBC Holdings plc Stock?

Overall, Banco Santander, S.A. stock has a Value Score of 45, Momentum Score of 78 and Quality Score of 5.

HSBC Holdings plc stock has a Value Score of 15, Momentum Score of 78 and Quality Score of 25.

Comparing Banco Santander, S.A. and HSBC Holdings plc’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.