Pinnacle Financial Partners (NYSE:PNFP) versus Susquehanna Bancshares (NASDAQ:SUSQ) Head to Head Analysis

Susquehanna Bancshares (NASDAQ:SUSQ) and Pinnacle Financial Partners (NYSE:PNFP) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, earnings, risk, institutional ownership and analyst recommendations.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.4% of Pinnacle Financial Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Pinnacle Financial Partners shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Susquehanna Bancshares and Pinnacle Financial Partners”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Susquehanna Bancshares	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Pinnacle Financial Partners	$3.32 billion	1.96	$641.86 million	$8.09	10.37

Pinnacle Financial Partners has higher revenue and earnings than Susquehanna Bancshares.

Profitability

This table compares Susquehanna Bancshares and Pinnacle Financial Partners’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Susquehanna Bancshares	N/A	N/A	N/A
Pinnacle Financial Partners	19.41%	10.10%	1.19%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Susquehanna Bancshares and Pinnacle Financial Partners, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Susquehanna Bancshares	0	0	0	0	0.00
Pinnacle Financial Partners	0	8	10	1	2.63

Pinnacle Financial Partners has a consensus price target of $113.41, suggesting a potential upside of 35.16%. Given Pinnacle Financial Partners’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Pinnacle Financial Partners is more favorable than Susquehanna Bancshares.

Summary

Pinnacle Financial Partners beats Susquehanna Bancshares on 10 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Susquehanna Bancshares

Susquehanna Bancshares, Inc. is a financial holding company. The Company conducts its business operations primarily through its commercial bank subsidiary, Susquehanna Bank, and other subsidiaries in the mid-Atlantic region to provide a range of retail and commercial banking and financial products and services. It provides a range of retail banking services, including checking, savings and club accounts, check cards, debit cards, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, home equity lines of credit, residential mortgage loans, home improvement loans, automobile loans, personal loans, and internet and mobile banking services. It also provides a range of commercial banking services, including business checking accounts, cash management services, money market accounts, land acquisition and development loans, commercial loans, floor plan, equipment and working capital lines of credit, small business loans and internet banking services.

About Pinnacle Financial Partners

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Pinnacle Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and professional entities in the United States. It accepts various deposits, including savings, noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing checking, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and provides treasury management services, such as online wire origination, enhanced ACH origination, positive pay, zero balance and sweep accounts, automated bill pay services, electronic receivables processing, lockbox processing, and merchant card acceptance services, small business and commercial credit cards corporate purchasing cards, and virtual accounting/deposit escrow solutions. The company also offers equipment and working capital loan; commercial real estate loans, such as investment properties and business loan; secured and unsecured loans comprising installment and term, lines of credit, and residential first mortgage, as well as home equity loans and home equity lines of credit; and credit cards for consumers and businesses. In addition, the company provides investment products; brokerage and investment advisory programs; and fiduciary and investment services, including personal trust, investment management, estate administration, endowments, foundations, individual retirement accounts, escrow services, and custody. Further, it offers insurance agency services in the property and casualty area; investment, merger and acquisition advisory services, private debt, equity and mezzanine, and other middle-market advisory services; and other banking services, including telephone and online banking, mobile banking, debit cards, direct deposit and remote deposit capture, mobile deposit option, automated teller machine, and cash management services. Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.