Comparing Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) and Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) and Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

41.5% of Carter Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.6% of Simmons First National shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of Carter Bankshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Simmons First National shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Carter Bankshares and Simmons First National’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Carter Bankshares	36.79%	7.46%	0.73%
Simmons First National	18.38%	8.67%	1.21%

Risk & Volatility

Carter Bankshares has a beta of 0.59, meaning that its share price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Simmons First National has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Carter Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Simmons First National pays an annual dividend of $0.86 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Carter Bankshares pays out 6.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Simmons First National pays out -34.0% 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. Simmons First National has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Simmons First National is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Carter Bankshares and Simmons First National, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Carter Bankshares	0	4	1	0	2.20
Simmons First National	1	3	4	1	2.56

Carter Bankshares presently has a consensus target price of $30.75, suggesting a potential upside of 1.79%. Simmons First National has a consensus target price of $25.50, suggesting a potential upside of 15.54%. Given Simmons First National’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Simmons First National is more favorable than Carter Bankshares.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Carter Bankshares and Simmons First National”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Carter Bankshares	$254.63 million	2.63	$31.00 million	$5.81	5.20
Simmons First National	$1.43 billion	2.23	-$397.55 million	($2.53)	-8.72

Carter Bankshares has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Simmons First National. Simmons First National is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Carter Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Simmons First National beats Carter Bankshares on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Carter Bankshares

Carter Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Carter Bank & Trust that provides various banking products and services in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, retirement, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposits. The company also offers commercial loans comprising secured and unsecured loans; consumer loans, such as secured and unsecured loans for financing automobiles, home improvements, education, overdraft protection, and personal investments, as well as residential mortgages; real estate construction, acquisition, commercial, and industrial loans; home equity lines of credit; and credit cards, as well as originates and holds fixed and variable rate mortgage loans. In addition, it provides other banking services that include safe deposit boxes, direct deposit of payroll, and social security checks; online banking products, including online and mobile banking, online account opening, bill pay, e-statement, mobile deposit, digital wallet, and ATM services; title insurance and other financial institution-related products and services; and treasury and corporate cash management services. Carter Bankshares, Inc. was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Martinsville, Virginia.

About Simmons First National

Simmons First National Corporation operates as the holding company for Simmons Bank that provides banking and other financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company offers checking, savings, and time deposits; consumer, real estate, and commercial loans; agricultural finance, equipment, and small business administration lending; trust and fiduciary services; credit cards; investment management products; treasury management; insurance products; and securities and investment services. It also provides ATM services; Internet and mobile banking platforms; overdraft facilities; and safe deposit boxes. The company was founded in 1903 and is headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.