Head-To-Head Comparison: Madison County Financial (MCBK) versus Its Peers

Insider and Institutional Ownership

50.4% of shares of all “BANKS – SOUTHEAST” companies are owned by institutional investors. 16.9% of Madison County Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 12.5% of shares of all “BANKS – SOUTHEAST” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Madison County Financial and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Madison County Financial	N/A	N/A	N/A
Madison County Financial Competitors	16.47%	9.97%	1.05%

Volatility & Risk

Madison County Financial has a beta of 0.08, indicating that its stock price is 92% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Madison County Financial’s peers have a beta of 0.63, indicating that their average stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Madison County Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Madison County Financial pays out 35.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “BANKS – SOUTHEAST” companies pay a dividend yield of 2.1% and pay out 24.1% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Madison County Financial lags its peers as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Madison County Financial and its peers top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Madison County Financial	$29.54 million	$3.82 million	26.21
Madison County Financial Competitors	$614.10 million	$154.64 million	13.99

Madison County Financial’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than Madison County Financial. Madison County Financial is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Madison County Financial peers beat Madison County Financial on 9 of the 11 factors compared.

About Madison County Financial

Madison County Financial, Inc. operates as the holding company for Madison County Bank that provides banking and financial services to individual and corporate customers in Nebraska, the United States. It offers checking, money market savings, savings, and individual retirement accounts; certificates of deposit; credit and debit cards; home loans; and consumer loans, including home equity lines of credit, second mortgage, home improvement, recreational vehicle, personal, and overdraft protection loans, as well as loans for automobiles, trucks, and vans. The company also provides agricultural real estate, machinery and equipment, livestock and crop, and operating loans; and commercial real estate, construction, investment property, and working capital loans, as well as equipment financing services. In addition, it offers online and mobile banking, and merchant services. The company was formerly known as Madison County Holding Company and changed its name to Madison County Financial, Inc. in October 2012. Madison County Financial, Inc. was founded in 1888 and is headquartered in Madison, Nebraska.