Analyzing U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) and SouthCrest Financial Group (OTCMKTS:SCSG)

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) and SouthCrest Financial Group (OTCMKTS:SCSG) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares U.S. Bancorp and SouthCrest Financial Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
U.S. Bancorp	12.92%	12.91%	0.96%
SouthCrest Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for U.S. Bancorp and SouthCrest Financial Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
U.S. Bancorp	0	11	9	0	2.45
SouthCrest Financial Group	0	0	0	0	0.00

U.S. Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $53.27, indicating a potential upside of 4.25%. Given U.S. Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe U.S. Bancorp is more favorable than SouthCrest Financial Group.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

77.6% of U.S. Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of U.S. Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares U.S. Bancorp and SouthCrest Financial Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
U.S. Bancorp	$27.09 billion	2.94	$5.43 billion	$3.27	15.63
SouthCrest Financial Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

U.S. Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than SouthCrest Financial Group.

Summary

U.S. Bancorp beats SouthCrest Financial Group on 9 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About U.S. Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp, a financial services holding company, provides various financial services to individuals, businesses, institutional organizations, governmental entities, and other financial institutions in the United States. It operates through Wealth, Corporate, Commercial and Institutional Banking; Consumer and Business Banking; Payment Services; and Treasury and Corporate Support segments. The company offers depository services, including checking accounts, savings accounts, and time certificate contracts; and lending services, such as traditional credit products and credit card services, lease financing and import/export trade, asset-backed lending, agricultural finance, and other products. It also provides ancillary services comprising capital markets, treasury management, and receivable lock-box collection services to corporate and governmental entity customers. In addition, the company offers asset management and fiduciary services for individuals, estates, foundations, business corporations, and charitable organizations. Further, it provides investment and insurance products to its customers principally within its domestic markets, as well as fund administration services to mutual and other funds. Additionally, the company provides corporate and purchasing card, and corporate trust services. Furthermore, it offers trust and investment management, merchant and ATM processing, mortgage banking, insurance, and brokerage and leasing services. U.S. Bancorp was founded in 1863 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

About SouthCrest Financial Group

SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for SouthCrest Bank, N.A. that provides various banking products and services. It offers checking, savings, and money market accounts; and certificates of deposit. The company also provides personal loans for cars, boats, recreational vehicles, and other purchases; home equity lines of credit; loans on investment properties; owner occupied real estate, acquisition construction and development, professional practice acquisition, equipment and inventory, construction to permanent, and investment real estate loans; and working capital and lines of credit. In addition, it offers credit cards; remote deposit capture, positive pay, ACH, online wires, merchant, and reorder checks services; and online banking, online bill pay, mobile banking and deposit, and telephone banking services. The company serves retail, private, entrepreneurial, high-net-worth, and commercial customers. It operates through 9 branches in Georgia. SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.