National Bankshares (NASDAQ:NKSH) and AmeriServ Financial (NASDAQ:ASRV) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends and earnings.
Profitability
This table compares National Bankshares and AmeriServ Financial's net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets |
---|
National Bankshares | 30.34% | 8.23% | 1.15% |
AmeriServ Financial | 7.27% | 4.51% | 0.38% |
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for National Bankshares and AmeriServ Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score |
---|
National Bankshares | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
AmeriServ Financial | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
National Bankshares currently has a consensus price target of $32.00, suggesting a potential downside of 10.49%. Given National Bankshares' higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe National Bankshares is more favorable than AmeriServ Financial.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
29.1% of National Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 40.6% of AmeriServ Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of National Bankshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 9.3% of AmeriServ Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Dividends
National Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. AmeriServ Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. National Bankshares pays out 54.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. AmeriServ Financial has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares National Bankshares and AmeriServ Financial's gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio |
---|
National Bankshares | $53.94 million | 4.24 | $17.47 million | $2.65 | 13.49 |
AmeriServ Financial | $64.54 million | 1.02 | $6.03 million | N/A | N/A |
National Bankshares has higher earnings, but lower revenue than AmeriServ Financial.
Volatility & Risk
National Bankshares has a beta of 0.54, meaning that its share price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AmeriServ Financial has a beta of 0.9, meaning that its share price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
National Bankshares beats AmeriServ Financial on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.