Reviewing Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) & Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC)

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) and Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability and earnings.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Banner and Southern Missouri Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Banner	$832.99 million	2.70	$168.90 million	$5.25	12.41
Southern Missouri Bancorp	$305.35 million	2.09	$58.58 million	$5.18	10.88

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Banner and Southern Missouri Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Banner	0	2	3	0	2.60
Southern Missouri Bancorp	0	1	2	0	2.67

Banner currently has a consensus target price of $70.17, suggesting a potential upside of 7.72%. Southern Missouri Bancorp has a consensus target price of $64.67, suggesting a potential upside of 14.72%. Given Southern Missouri Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Southern Missouri Bancorp is more favorable than Banner.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

87.3% of Banner shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.5% of Southern Missouri Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Banner shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 16.6% of Southern Missouri Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Banner has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Southern Missouri Bancorp has a beta of 0.98, suggesting that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Banner and Southern Missouri Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Banner	21.15%	10.06%	1.13%
Southern Missouri Bancorp	19.17%	11.35%	1.20%

Dividends

Banner pays an annual dividend of $1.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Southern Missouri Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Banner pays out 36.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Southern Missouri Bancorp pays out 17.8% 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. Southern Missouri Bancorp has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years.

Summary

Banner beats Southern Missouri Bancorp on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Banner

Banner Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Banner Bank that engages in the provision of commercial banking and financial products and services to individuals, businesses, and public sector entities in the United States. It accepts various deposit instruments, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, regular savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as treasury management services and retirement savings plans. The company also provides commercial real estate loans, including owner-occupied, investment properties, and multifamily residential real estate loans; construction, land, and land development loans; one- to four-family residential real estate lending; commercial business loans; agricultural loans; consumer and other loans, such as home equity lines of credit, automobile, and boat and recreational vehicle loans, as well as loans secured by deposit accounts; and small business administration loans. In addition, it provides electronic and digital banking services comprising debit cards and ATMs, internet banking, remote deposit, and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1890 and is based in Walla Walla, Washington.

About Southern Missouri Bancorp

Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Southern Bank that provides banking and financial services to individuals and corporate customers in the United States. The company offers deposits products, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing transaction accounts, saving accounts, certificates of deposit, retirement savings plans, and money market deposit accounts. It also provides loans, such as residential mortgage, commercial real estate, construction, and commercial business loans; and consumer loans comprising home equity, direct and indirect automobile loans, second mortgages, mobile home loans, and loans secured by deposits. In addition, the company offers fiduciary and investment management services; commercial and consumer insurance; online and mobile banking services; and debit or credit cards. The company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.