Head-To-Head Review: Commercial Bancgroup (NASDAQ:CBK) and Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK)

Commercial Bancgroup (NASDAQ:CBK) and Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) are both small-cap financial services companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings and dividends.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.6% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned 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.

Profitability

This table compares Commercial Bancgroup and Equity Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Commercial Bancgroup	N/A	N/A	N/A
Equity Bancshares	5.01%	12.13%	1.39%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Commercial Bancgroup and Equity Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Commercial Bancgroup	0	0	0	1	4.00
Equity Bancshares	0	0	1	2	3.67

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Commercial Bancgroup and Equity Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Commercial Bancgroup	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Equity Bancshares	$335.67 million	2.34	$62.62 million	$1.20	34.00

Equity Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than Commercial Bancgroup.

Summary

Equity Bancshares beats Commercial Bancgroup on 8 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Commercial Bancgroup

We are a bank holding company headquartered in Harrogate, Tennessee, and have elected under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHC Act”), to become a financial holding company. We were incorporated in Tennessee in 1975, and we operate primarily through our wholly owned bank subsidiary, Commercial Bank, a Tennessee banking corporation organized in 1976. The Bank is a full-service community banking institution that offers traditional consumer and commercial products and services to serve businesses and individuals in select markets in Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Our primary service areas in Tennessee are (i) the metropolitan statistical areas (the “MSAs”) of (a) Nashville-Davidson — Murfreesboro — Franklin, Tennessee (the “Nashville MSA”), (b) Knoxville, Tennessee (the “Knoxville MSA”), and (c) Kingsport-Bristol, Tennessee-Virginia and Johnson City, Tennessee (collectively, the “Tri-Cities MSA”), and (ii) Claiborne County, Cocke County, Union County, and Hamblen County, and their surrounding areas. In Kentucky, we primarily serve the communities in Southeast Kentucky, with branches in Barbourville, Corbin, Cumberland, Harlan, London, Middlesboro, and Pineville. Upon the Bank’s merger with Alliance Bank & Trust Company (“Alliance”) on July 1, 2024, we expanded our services to North Carolina, including parts of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North Carolina-South Carolina MSA (the “Charlotte MSA”), with branches in Shelby, Kings Mountain and Gastonia. We also operate one loan production office (“LPO”) in Lincolnton, North Carolina. The Bank was founded as Commercial Bank of Claiborne County, a full-service Tennessee-chartered bank, by E. Oscar Robertson on June 9, 1976. On November 1, 1976, the Bank opened for business in Harrogate, Tennessee. Approximately three years later, on January 8, 1979, we opened our first branch in Speedwell, Tennessee. In the following years, our growth has been driven primarily by organic expansion in existing markets and into new markets and through our strategic acquisitions. Over the last five years, we have had a total asset compound annual growth rate (“CAGR”) of 8% while maintaining profitability, credit quality and prudent capital management. Please refer to the “Total Assets” chart below on page 2 of this prospectus for the annual growth in our total assets for each of the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020 through 2024 and for the six months ended June 30, 2025. The following information summarizes our growth history: • On April 23, 1986, we acquired Union County Bank’s three branch locations in Maynardville and Luttrell, Tennessee through an FDIC-assisted transaction. • On November 16, 2001, we acquired Middlesboro Federal Bank (Middlesboro, Kentucky) with its four offices located in Middlesboro, Pineville, and Cumberland, Kentucky, and in the Fountain City community of Knoxville, Tennessee. • On September 8, 2008, we acquired The Union National Bank and Trust Company of Barbourville (Barbourville, Kentucky) with its five branch locations in Barbourville and Corbin, Kentucky. • By the end of 2008, our total assets had increased to over $700 million. • On March 1, 2014, we opened an LPO in Nashville, Tennessee, and by December 31, 2014, we had over $18 million in outstanding loan balances in the Nashville MSA. • On April 18, 2016, we acquired National Bank of Tennessee (Newport, Tennessee), which added two new branches to our network. • On August 15, 2017, we announced the acquisition of Citizens Bank (New Tazewell, Tennessee) with its three branch locations in New Tazewell, Harrogate, and Morristown, Tennessee, and an LPO in Kingsport, Tennessee, which was merged into our current Kingsport, Tennessee office. • On March 1, 2019, we transitioned our LPO in Nashville, Tennessee to a full-service branch in Brentwood, Tennessee (part of the Nashville MSA). As of March 31, 2019, we had over $110 million in outstanding loan balances in the Nashville MSA. • On February 1, 2020, we acquired First National Bank and Trust (London, Kentucky) with its four branches in London and Corbin, Kentucky resulting in our total assets exceeding $1.5 billion. • On June 1, 2023, we acquired a majority ownership interest in AB&T Financial Corporation (“AB&T”) (Gastonia, North Carolina), the parent company of Alliance. On June 30, 2024, we acquired the remaining minority ownership interests in AB&T, and on July 1, 2024, Alliance merged with the Bank. The acquisition of Alliance added four branches and one LPO to our network and expanded our reach into North Carolina, including the Charlotte MSA. • We expect to open a de novo branch office in Belmont, North Carolina during 2026, which will further increase our presence in the Charlotte MSA. Our principal executive office is located in Harrogate, Tennessee.

About Equity Bancshares

Equity Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Equity Bank that provides a range of banking, mortgage banking, and financial services to individual and corporate customers. The company accepts various demand, savings, money market, and time deposits. Its loan products include commercial and industrial, commercial real estate-backed, commercial lines of credit, working capital, term, equipment financing, acquisition, expansion and development, borrowing base, real estate construction, homebuilder, agricultural, government guaranteed, and other loan products to national and regional companies, restaurant franchisees, hoteliers, real estate developers, manufacturing and industrial companies, agribusiness companies, and other businesses. The company’s loan products also comprise various consumer loans to individuals and professionals, including residential real estate loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, installment loans, unsecured and secured personal lines of credit, overdraft protection, and letters of credit. It also provides debit cards; online banking solutions, such as access to account balances, online transfers, online bill payment, and electronic delivery of customer statements; mobile banking solutions comprising remote check deposits with mobile bill pay; ATMs; and treasury management, wire transfer, automated clearing house, and stop payment services. In addition, the company offers cash management deposit products, such as lockbox, remote deposit capture, positive pay, reverse positive pay, account reconciliation services, zero balance accounts, and sweep accounts, as well as banking services through telephone, mail, and personal appointments. As of December 31, 2021, it operated a network of 69 branches in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Wichita, Kansas.