Head-To-Head Contrast: Republic Bancorp (NASDAQ:RBCAA) versus Mvb Financial (NASDAQ:MVBF)

Mvb Financial (NASDAQ:MVBF) and Republic Bancorp (NASDAQ:RBCAA) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership and earnings.

Volatility and Risk

Mvb Financial has a beta of 0.87, indicating that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Republic Bancorp has a beta of 0.55, indicating that its stock price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

52.7% of Mvb Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 24.4% of Republic Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 9.9% of Mvb Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 55.9% of Republic Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mvb Financial and Republic Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mvb Financial	$200.74 million	1.89	$26.94 million	$2.96	9.88
Republic Bancorp	$403.43 million	4.50	$131.32 million	$6.55	14.11

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

Dividends

Mvb Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Republic Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Mvb Financial pays out 23.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Republic Bancorp pays out 30.2% 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. Republic Bancorp has raised its dividend for 27 consecutive years. Mvb Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Mvb Financial and Republic Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mvb Financial	17.53%	2.86%	0.29%
Republic Bancorp	25.38%	11.20%	1.77%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Mvb Financial and Republic Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mvb Financial	0	2	4	0	2.67
Republic Bancorp	0	3	1	0	2.25

Mvb Financial currently has a consensus target price of $33.67, suggesting a potential upside of 15.18%. Republic Bancorp has a consensus target price of $98.00, suggesting a potential upside of 6.07%. Given Mvb Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Mvb Financial is more favorable than Republic Bancorp.

Summary

Republic Bancorp beats Mvb Financial on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mvb Financial

MVB Financial Corp. operates as bank holding company for MVB Bank, Inc that provides financial services to individuals and corporate clients. The company operates through three segments: CoRe Banking, Mortgage Banking, and The Financial Holding Company. It offers various demand deposit accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit; and commercial, consumer, and real estate mortgage loans, as well as lines of credit. The company also provides debit cards; cashier's checks; safe deposit rental facilities; and non-deposit investment services, as well as financial technology (Fintech) banking services. In addition, it offers fintech solutions for the gaming, payments, banking-as-a-service, and digital asset sectors; fraud prevention services for merchants, credit agencies, Fintech companies, and other vendors; and digital products and web and mobile applications for forward-thinking community banks, credit unions, digital banks, and Fintech companies. It operates full-service branches in West Virginia and Virginia. MVB Financial Corp. was founded in 1997 and is based in Fairmont, West Virginia.

About Republic Bancorp

Republic Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for Republic Bank & Trust Company that provides various banking products and services in the United States. It operates in six segments: Traditional Banking, Warehouse, Mortgage Banking, Tax Refund Solutions, Republic Payment Solutions, and Republic Credit Solutions. The company offers demand, money market accounts, savings, individual retirement accounts, time, brokered, and other certificates of deposit; and retail and commercial mortgage, construction and land development, consumer, aircraft, and marine loans. It also provides credit cards; title insurance and other financial products and services; and private banking, lockbox processing, remote deposit capture, business online banking, account reconciliation, automated clearing house processing, and internet and mobile banking services. In addition, it offers short-term and revolving credit facilities to mortgage bankers through mortgage warehouse lines of credit; mortgage banking; tax refund solutions, which facilitate the receipt and payment of federal and state tax refund products through third-party tax preparers and tax-preparation software providers; payments-related products and services to consumers through third party service providers; and consumer credit products. The company offers its services through full-services banking centers in Kentucky, Indiana, Florida, Ohio, and Tennessee. Republic Bancorp, Inc. was incorporated in 1974 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.