Contrasting Horizon Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBNC) and Bay Banks of Virginia (OTCMKTS:BAYK)

Horizon Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBNC) and Bay Banks of Virginia (OTCMKTS:BAYK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Horizon Bancorp and Bay Banks of Virginia, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Horizon Bancorp	0	2	2	0	2.50
Bay Banks of Virginia	0	0	0	0	N/A

Horizon Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $16.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.04%. Given Horizon Bancorp’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Horizon Bancorp is more favorable than Bay Banks of Virginia.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Horizon Bancorp and Bay Banks of Virginia”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Horizon Bancorp	$180.49 million	3.83	$27.98 million	$0.54	29.04
Bay Banks of Virginia	$55.38 million	2.27	$7.06 million	N/A	N/A

Horizon Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Bay Banks of Virginia.

Profitability

This table compares Horizon Bancorp and Bay Banks of Virginia’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Horizon Bancorp	5.50%	8.17%	0.74%
Bay Banks of Virginia	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

64.5% of Horizon Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 2.8% of Horizon Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.6% of Bay Banks of Virginia shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Horizon Bancorp beats Bay Banks of Virginia on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Horizon Bancorp

Horizon Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Horizon Bank that engages in the provision of commercial and retail banking services. The company offers checking, saving, money market, certificate of deposits, individual retirement accounts, and time deposits, as well as non-interest- and interest-bearing demand deposits. It also provides commercial, residential real estate, mortgage, home equity, auto, personal, business, agricultural, and SBA loans, as well as credit cards. In addition, the company offers corporate and individual trust and agency, investment management, and real estate investment trust services; debit cards; treasury management; online and mobile banking; wealth, retirement, and estate and trust services; and sells various insurance products. It operates through full-service offices in northern and central Indiana and southern and central Michigan. Horizon Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in Michigan City, Indiana.

About Bay Banks of Virginia

Bay Banks of Virginia, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to businesses, professionals, and consumers in Virginia. The company accepts checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, cash management accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. Its loan products include commercial and industrial loans, such as small business loans, asset based loans, and other secured and unsecured loans and lines of credit; purchased loans; residential and commercial mortgages; home equity loans; consumer installment loans; and consumer loans comprising automobile and boat financing, home improvement loans, and unsecured personal loans. The company also provides credit cards; and insurance, online banking, telephone banking, mobile banking, analysis checking, cash management deposit, wire, direct deposit payroll, lockbox, positive pay, and remote deposit services, as well as a line of commercial lending options. In addition, it offers management services, including estate planning and settlement, as well as trust administration, investment, and wealth management services; and revocable and irrevocable living trusts, testamentary trusts, custodial accounts, investment planning, brokerage services, investment managed accounts, and managed and self-directed rollover individual retirement accounts for personal and corporate trusts. As of March 9, 2020, the company operated 17 banking offices located throughout greater Richmond region, the Northern Neck region, Middlesex County, and the Hampton Roads region. Bay Banks of Virginia, Inc. was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.