Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK – Get Free Report) and Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT – Get Free Report) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends, valuation, risk and analyst recommendations.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
30.7% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.5% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 22.9% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.9% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
This table compares Hawthorn Bancshares and Stock Yards Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Hawthorn Bancshares | 22.77% | 15.15% | 1.42% |
| Stock Yards Bancorp | 25.41% | 13.39% | 1.55% |
Dividends
Volatility & Risk
Hawthorn Bancshares has a beta of 0.47, suggesting that its share price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Stock Yards Bancorp has a beta of 0.74, suggesting that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Hawthorn Bancshares and Stock Yards Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Hawthorn Bancshares | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
| Stock Yards Bancorp | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2.14 |
Stock Yards Bancorp has a consensus target price of $88.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.90%. Given Stock Yards Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Stock Yards Bancorp is more favorable than Hawthorn Bancshares.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Hawthorn Bancshares and Stock Yards Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Hawthorn Bancshares | $111.97 million | 2.38 | $23.80 million | $3.82 | 10.11 |
| Stock Yards Bancorp | $564.54 million | 4.33 | $140.15 million | $5.02 | 15.67 |
Stock Yards Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Hawthorn Bancshares. Hawthorn Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Stock Yards Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Stock Yards Bancorp beats Hawthorn Bancshares on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Hawthorn Bancshares
Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Hawthorn Bank that provides various banking services in the United States. It accepts checking, savings, money market, individual retirement, and other time deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also offers commercial and industrial, single payment personal, installment, commercial and residential real estate, and consumer loans, as well as equipment, operating, and small business administration loans; and debit and credit cards. In addition, it provides trust services that include estate planning, investment, and asset management services; and cash management, safety deposit box, brokerage, and Internet banking services. Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in Jefferson City, Missouri.
About Stock Yards Bancorp
Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. operates as a holding company for Stock Yards Bank & Trust Company that provides various financial services for individuals, corporations, and others in the United States. It operates in two segments, Commercial Banking, and WM&T. The Commercial Banking segment offers a range of loan and deposit products to individual consumers and businesses in all its markets through retail lending, mortgage banking, deposit services, online banking, mobile banking, private banking, commercial lending, commercial real estate lending, leasing, treasury management services, merchant services, international banking, correspondent banking, and other banking services. This segment also provides securities brokerage services through an arrangement with a third party broker-dealer. The WM&T segment provides investment management, financial and retirement planning, and trust and estate services, as well as retirement plan management for businesses and corporations. It provides services in Louisville, central, eastern, and northern Kentucky, as well as Indianapolis, Indiana and Cincinnati, Ohio metropolitan markets. The company was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.
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