Head-To-Head Survey: TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) & Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN)

TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) and Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, dividends and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares TowneBank and Benchmark Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
TowneBank	14.89%	7.32%	0.90%
Benchmark Bankshares	N/A	N/A	N/A

Volatility & Risk

TowneBank has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Benchmark Bankshares has a beta of 0.3, suggesting that its share price is 70% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

56.0% of TowneBank shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.2% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.1% of TowneBank shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 14.0% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for TowneBank and Benchmark Bankshares, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
TowneBank	0	0	2	0	3.00
Benchmark Bankshares	0	0	0	0	0.00

TowneBank currently has a consensus target price of $36.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.62%. Given TowneBank’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe TowneBank is more favorable than Benchmark Bankshares.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares TowneBank and Benchmark Bankshares”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
TowneBank	$941.58 million	2.94	$153.71 million	$1.99	18.58
Benchmark Bankshares	$62.25 million	1.77	$15.38 million	N/A	N/A

TowneBank has higher revenue and earnings than Benchmark Bankshares.

Dividends

TowneBank pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Benchmark Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. TowneBank pays out 50.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. TowneBank has increased its dividend for 12 consecutive years.

Summary

TowneBank beats Benchmark Bankshares on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About TowneBank

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals. The company operates through three segments: Banking, Realty, and Insurance. It accepts various deposits, including demand deposits, savings accounts, money rate savings, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers secured and unsecured personal loans for financing automobiles, home improvements, education, and personal investments; commercial loans for working capital, business expansion, and equipment and machinery purchases; and mortgage loans, as well as real estate acquisition, development, and construction loans. In addition, it provides other services, such as safe deposit boxes, treasury management services, direct deposit of payroll and social security checks, and automatic drafts for various accounts, as well as online, mobile, and on-call banking services. Further, the company offers documentation services to accomplish tax deferral to investors; investment and asset management services; commercial mortgage brokerage services; and other financial services, such as financial, retirement, and estate planning services, as well as assistance on various investment options comprising alternative investments, annuities, margin accounts, convertible bonds, and pension and profit-sharing plans. Additionally, it provides residential real estate, relocation, property management, vacation rentals, and title and settlement services; and originates residential mortgage loans. The company also offers life, property, casualty, and vehicle insurance services; and employee benefit programs, such as health, dental, vision, and disability insurance. It operates in Richmond, Virginia, the Greater Hampton Roads region in southeastern Virginia, northeastern North Carolina, Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro, and Greenville, North Carolina. TowneBank was incorporated in 1998 and is based in Portsmouth, Virginia.

About Benchmark Bankshares

Benchmark Bankshares, Inc. operates as the holding company for Benchmark Community Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, such as checking, saving, commercial services, and youth accounts. Its loan products include personal, mortgage, other real estate, business, auto, and student loans. The company also offers credit and debit cards; wealth management services comprising financial solutions, financial and retirement planning, and portfolio management, as well as estate, charitable giving, and trust services; and reorder checks, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, bill pay, and internet and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1971 and is based in Kenbridge, Virginia.