Fidelity D & D Bancorp (NASDAQ:FDBC) and Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) Critical Comparison

Fidelity D & D Bancorp (NASDAQ:FDBC) and Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, profitability and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

Fidelity D & D Bancorp has a beta of 0.63, meaning that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Carter Bankshares has a beta of 1.03, meaning that its stock price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

20.0% of Fidelity D & D Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 41.5% of Carter Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 21.0% of Fidelity D & D Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of Carter Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Fidelity D & D Bancorp and Carter Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fidelity D & D Bancorp	14.14%	11.27%	0.84%
Carter Bankshares	5.41%	4.09%	0.32%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Fidelity D & D Bancorp and Carter Bankshares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fidelity D & D Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A
Carter Bankshares	0	0	1	0	3.00

Carter Bankshares has a consensus price target of $21.00, indicating a potential upside of 24.48%. Given Carter Bankshares’ higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Carter Bankshares is more favorable than Fidelity D & D Bancorp.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Fidelity D & D Bancorp and Carter Bankshares’ gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fidelity D & D Bancorp	$70.18 million	4.26	$18.21 million	$2.83	18.42
Carter Bankshares	$126.13 million	3.08	$23.19 million	$0.57	29.60

Carter Bankshares has higher revenue and earnings than Fidelity D & D Bancorp. Fidelity D & D Bancorp 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

Carter Bankshares beats Fidelity D & D Bancorp on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Fidelity D & D Bancorp

Fidelity D & D Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for The Fidelity Deposit and Discount Bank that provides a range of banking, trust, and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and corporate customers. The company accepts savings, club, interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking, money market, and short- and long-term time deposits, as well as certificates of deposit. It also offers commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, consumer, and residential mortgage loans. In addition, the company provides alternative financial and insurance products with asset management services. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Dunmore, Pennsylvania.

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.