Southern States Bancshares (SSBK) Competitors

Southern States Bancshares (NASDAQ:SSBK) and Byline Bancorp (NYSE:BY) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, earnings, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and media sentiment.

Is SSBK or BY a better dividend stock?

Southern States Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Byline Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Southern States Bancshares pays out 9.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Byline Bancorp pays out 14.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Byline Bancorp has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Byline Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media prefer SSBK or BY?

In the previous week, Byline Bancorp had 5 more articles in the media than Southern States Bancshares. MarketBeat recorded 5 mentions for Byline Bancorp and 0 mentions for Southern States Bancshares. Byline Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 0.41 beat Southern States Bancshares' score of 0.00 indicating that Byline Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Southern States Bancshares	Neutral
Byline Bancorp	Neutral

Which has more risk and volatility, SSBK or BY?

Southern States Bancshares has a beta of 0.29, meaning that its stock price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Byline Bancorp has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals & insiders hold more shares of SSBK or BY?

58.7% of Southern States Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.7% of Byline Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 14.8% of Southern States Bancshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 28.8% of Byline Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Which has better valuation & earnings, SSBK or BY?

Byline Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Southern States Bancshares. Southern States Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Byline Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Southern States Bancshares	$177.17M	2.04	$34.87M	$3.80	9.57
Byline Bancorp	$624.78M	2.00	$120.76M	$2.70	10.04

Is SSBK or BY more profitable?

Southern States Bancshares has a net margin of 20.39% compared to Byline Bancorp's net margin of 19.10%. Southern States Bancshares' return on equity of 14.38% beat Byline Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Southern States Bancshares	20.39%	14.38%	1.39%
Byline Bancorp	19.10%	11.00%	1.25%

Do analysts prefer SSBK or BY?

Southern States Bancshares presently has a consensus target price of $35.00, suggesting a potential downside of 3.77%. Byline Bancorp has a consensus target price of $33.25, suggesting a potential upside of 22.64%. Given Byline Bancorp's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Byline Bancorp is more favorable than Southern States Bancshares.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Southern States Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Byline Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Summary

Byline Bancorp beats Southern States Bancshares on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.