German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) vs. Solera National Bancorp (OTCMKTS:SLRK) Head-To-Head Analysis

Solera National Bancorp (OTCMKTS:SLRK) and German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Solera National Bancorp and German American Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Solera National Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00
German American Bancorp	0	1	3	0	2.75

German American Bancorp has a consensus price target of $47.67, indicating a potential upside of 9.03%. Given German American Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe German American Bancorp is more favorable than Solera National Bancorp.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

46.9% of German American Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 17.4% of Solera National Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.2% of German American Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Solera National Bancorp and German American Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Solera National Bancorp	$83.83 million	1.02	$23.02 million	$5.82	3.40
German American Bancorp	$487.40 million	3.37	$112.64 million	$3.61	12.11

German American Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Solera National Bancorp. Solera National Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than German American Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Solera National Bancorp has a beta of 0.32, suggesting that its share price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, German American Bancorp has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its share price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Solera National Bancorp and German American Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Solera National Bancorp	26.93%	N/A	N/A
German American Bancorp	27.09%	11.98%	1.62%

Summary

German American Bancorp beats Solera National Bancorp on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Solera National Bancorp

Solera National Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Solera National Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services in the United States. The company offers checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, time and demand deposits, and individual retirement accounts (IRA), as well as certificates of deposit; and real estate secured loans, construction loans, small business administration loans, business lines of credit, and equipment financing. It also provides online banking, account analysis, combined account analysis, commercial sweep, remote deposit, ACH origination, payroll direct deposit, merchant, business debit card, and cash management services. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Lakewood, Colorado.

About German American Bancorp

German American Bancorp, Inc. operates as a financial holding company for German American Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services. The company operates through three segments: Core Banking, Wealth Management Services, and Insurance Operations. The Core Banking segment accepts deposits from the general public; and originates consumer, commercial and agricultural, commercial and agricultural real estate, and residential mortgage loans, as well as sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market. The Wealth Management segment provides trust, investment advisory, brokerage, and retirement planning services. The Insurance Operations segment offers a range of personal and corporate property and casualty insurance products. It also offers checking, saving, and individual retirement accounts; certificates of deposit; wire transfer; credit cards; home equity, mortgages, and small business; treasury management; and online and mobile banking, bill pay, digital wallet, mobile check deposit, credit score and report, money management, and estatements, as well as wealth advisory. German American Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is based in Jasper, Indiana.