South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI – Get Free Report) and First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI – Get Free Report) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and profitability.
Risk and Volatility
South Plains Financial has a beta of 0.47, suggesting that its share price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Guaranty Bancshares has a beta of 0.43, suggesting that its share price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for South Plains Financial and First Guaranty Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| South Plains Financial | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 3.00 |
| First Guaranty Bancshares | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.50 |
Dividends
South Plains Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. First Guaranty Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. South Plains Financial pays out 20.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Guaranty Bancshares pays out 3.1% 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. South Plains Financial has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. South Plains Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Profitability
This table compares South Plains Financial and First Guaranty Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| South Plains Financial | 21.23% | 12.36% | 1.40% |
| First Guaranty Bancshares | 9.17% | 10.67% | 0.52% |
Institutional & Insider Ownership
54.9% of South Plains Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.5% of First Guaranty Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.3% of South Plains Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 49.4% of First Guaranty Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares South Plains Financial and First Guaranty Bancshares”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| South Plains Financial | $296.89 million | 2.73 | $58.47 million | $3.77 | 11.42 |
| First Guaranty Bancshares | $105.38 million | 2.05 | -$56.02 million | $1.28 | 10.21 |
South Plains Financial has higher revenue and earnings than First Guaranty Bancshares. First Guaranty Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than South Plains Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
South Plains Financial beats First Guaranty Bancshares on 16 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
About South Plains Financial
South Plains Financial, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Lubbock, Texas, and the parent company of City Bank. Through City Bank, it provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses and other organizations. Its services include personal and commercial deposit accounts, lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and wealth-related services. The company serves customers primarily in Texas and New Mexico through its branch network and other banking channels.
About First Guaranty Bancshares
First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Hammond, Louisiana. It operates through its principal subsidiary, First Guaranty Bank, a community-focused financial institution serving individuals, businesses and organizations. First Guaranty Bank offers traditional banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage loans, online and mobile banking, cash-management services and other treasury-management solutions.
Receive News & Ratings for South Plains Financial Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for South Plains Financial and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
