When shopping for an ASX stock from the financials sector, most investors would, perhaps out of sheer instinct, turn to one of the big four ASX bank shares.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), and ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) are some of the most famous companies on our stock exchange. All four have been ASX stalwarts for decades, and each has a strong track record of paying out fat (and mostly fully franked) dividends over this time.
Yet one ASX broker reckons the big four banks aren't the place to go hunting. Instead, it's recommending another ASX All Ords financial stock.
That stock is none other than Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO)
Judo is a financial stock that first debuted on the ASX back in late 2021. Initially, it made a name for itself as a 'neo-bank'. But when that craze petered out, Judo morphed into a commercial lending company. Today, it has a market capitalisation of just under $1.8 billion.
Unlike some of the big four banks (namely CBA), the Judo share price has had a rollercoaster few years.
As it stands today, investors are down 31.4% from when Judo first floated on the ASX. While investors have enjoyed a 20.8% rise over the past 12 months, they have also lost 15.15% on Judo since the start of 2025.
So what does Macquarie see in this ASX financial stock and big four bank outsider?
Growth, that's what.
In a recent broker note, Macquarie outlined its projections for Judo's earnings growth over the next few years. It has pencilled in an earnings per share (EPS) for Judo of 8 cents for FY2025. This is then predicted to rise to 12 cents per share by FY2026, then to 15 cents by FY27. If realised, that would represent earnings growth rates of 20.6%, 52.9%, and 24.7% respectively.
As a result, Macquarie gave Judo a 12-month share price target of $1.70, which has subsequently been raised to $1.75 a share. Despite its 'neutral' rating, that would represent an upside of just under 11.5% from where the shares are today.
Speaking of, today has seen a sizeable 7.2% share price gain to $1.57 a share for Judo Bank (at the time of writing).
Let's see if Macquarie is on the money here.
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