Security Bank (OTCMKTS:SYBJF) versus Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) Head to Head Survey

Security Bank (OTCMKTS:SYBJF) and Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) are both financial services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, earnings, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Security Bank and Hawthorn Bancshares”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Security Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A	$12.07	0.13
Hawthorn Bancshares	$58.11 million	3.00	$960,000.00	$0.30	83.00

Hawthorn Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than Security Bank. Security Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hawthorn Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Security Bank pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 63.7%. Hawthorn Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Security Bank pays out 8.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hawthorn Bancshares pays out 253.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Hawthorn Bancshares has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Security Bank is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Security Bank and Hawthorn Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Security Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A
Hawthorn Bancshares	3.96%	3.19%	0.23%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Security Bank and Hawthorn Bancshares, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Security Bank	0	0	0	0	N/A
Hawthorn Bancshares	0	0	0	0	N/A

Insider and Institutional Ownership

13.8% of Security Bank shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 30.7% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 23.4% of Hawthorn Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Hawthorn Bancshares beats Security Bank on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Security Bank

Security Bank Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services to wholesale and retail clients in the Philippines. It operates through Retail Banking, Wholesale Banking, Business Banking, and Financial Markets segments. The Retail Banking segment provides deposits, consumer loans, credit cards, bancassurance, and investments to individual clients. The Wholesale Banking segment offers relationship management, loans, trade, cash management, deposits, and investments services; and structured financing and advisory services, debt and equity capital raising, project financing, and mergers and acquisitions advisory to corporates, institutional, and public sector markets and commercial clients. The Business Banking segment offers deposits, loans, cash management, insurance, and investments to micro, small, and medium enterprises. The Financial Markets segment provides money market, foreign exchange, financial derivatives, debt and equity securities brokerage, asset management, trust, and fiduciary services. It also provides a range of investment banking and financial services; and foreign exchange brokerage services. In addition, the company rents and leases a range of machineries and equipment, automotive equipment, and automotive vehicles comprising cars, vans, pick-ups, trucks, tractors, trailers, and buses, as well as various land, air, or water transportation equipment. The company was incorporated in 1951 and is headquartered in Makati City, the Philippines.

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.