Critical Contrast: Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT) & West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA)

Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT) and West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Stock Yards Bancorp has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, West Bancorporation has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Stock Yards Bancorp and West Bancorporation”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Stock Yards Bancorp	$338.25 million	6.17	$107.75 million	$3.64	19.47
West Bancorporation	$76.55 million	4.76	$24.14 million	$1.28	16.91

Stock Yards Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than West Bancorporation. West Bancorporation 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.

Profitability

This table compares Stock Yards Bancorp and West Bancorporation’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Stock Yards Bancorp	21.62%	12.00%	1.29%
West Bancorporation	11.17%	9.46%	0.55%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Stock Yards Bancorp and West Bancorporation, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Stock Yards Bancorp	0	4	0	0	2.00
West Bancorporation	0	1	0	0	2.00

Stock Yards Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $69.25, indicating a potential downside of 2.30%. West Bancorporation has a consensus target price of $23.00, indicating a potential upside of 6.24%. Given West Bancorporation’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe West Bancorporation is more favorable than Stock Yards Bancorp.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

56.5% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 44.3% of West Bancorporation shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.9% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.5% of West Bancorporation shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Stock Yards Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. West Bancorporation pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Stock Yards Bancorp pays out 34.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. West Bancorporation pays out 78.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Stock Yards Bancorp has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years.

Summary

Stock Yards Bancorp beats West Bancorporation on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About West Bancorporation

West Bancorporation, Inc. operates as the financial holding company provides community banking and trust services to individuals and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. It offers deposit services, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit. The company also provides loan products comprising commercial real estate loans, construction and land development loans, commercial lines of credit, and commercial term loans; consumer loans, including loans extended to individuals for household, family, and other personal expenditures not secured by real estate; and 1-4 family residential mortgages and home equity loans. In addition, it offers online and mobile banking, treasury management services including cash management, client-generated automated clearing house transactions, remote deposit, and fraud protection services; merchant credit card processing and corporate credit cards; and administration of estates, conservatorships, personal trusts, and agency accounts. The company was founded in 1893 and is headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa.