Head to Head Contrast: MetroCity Bankshares (NASDAQ:MCBS) and Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN)

Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN) and MetroCity Bankshares (NASDAQ:MCBS) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, risk, profitability, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

3.2% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.3% of MetroCity Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. 14.0% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 27.5% of MetroCity Bankshares shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Benchmark Bankshares has a beta of 0.17, suggesting that its share price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MetroCity Bankshares has a beta of 0.65, suggesting that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Benchmark Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. MetroCity Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Benchmark Bankshares pays out 22.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MetroCity Bankshares pays out 38.8% 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Benchmark Bankshares and MetroCity Bankshares, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Benchmark Bankshares	0	0	0	0	0.00
MetroCity Bankshares	0	2	0	0	2.00

MetroCity Bankshares has a consensus target price of $31.00, indicating a potential upside of 17.47%. Given MetroCity Bankshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe MetroCity Bankshares is more favorable than Benchmark Bankshares.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Benchmark Bankshares and MetroCity Bankshares”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Benchmark Bankshares	$73.53 million	1.96	$15.85 million	$4.29	7.54
MetroCity Bankshares	$235.98 million	2.85	$64.50 million	$2.58	10.23

MetroCity Bankshares has higher revenue and earnings than Benchmark Bankshares. Benchmark Bankshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MetroCity Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Benchmark Bankshares and MetroCity Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Benchmark Bankshares	23.75%	N/A	N/A
MetroCity Bankshares	28.25%	15.39%	1.84%

Summary

MetroCity Bankshares beats Benchmark Bankshares on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Benchmark Bankshares

Benchmark Bankshares, Inc. operates as the holding company for Benchmark Community Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, such as checking, saving, commercial services, and youth accounts. Its loan products include personal, mortgage, other real estate, business, auto, and student loans. The company also offers credit and debit cards; wealth management services comprising financial solutions, financial and retirement planning, and portfolio management, as well as estate, charitable giving, and trust services; and reorder checks, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, bill pay, and internet and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1971 and is based in Kenbridge, Virginia.

About MetroCity Bankshares

MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Metro City Bank that engages in the provision of banking products and services in the United States. It offers customary banking services, such as consumer and commercial checking accounts, savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides commercial and consumer loans, including single family residential loans; construction and development, and owner and non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans; letters of credit; and commercial and industrial loans, residential mortgage loans, and SBA loans. In addition, it offers online banking services, which include access to account balances, online transfers, online bill payment, and electronic delivery of customer statements; mobile banking solutions, such as remote check deposit with mobile bill pay; and automated teller machines and telephone banking services. Further, it provides debit cards for checking customers, direct deposits, and cashier's checks; treasury management services, including wire transfer, automated clearing house, and stop payments services; and cash management deposit products, such as remote deposit capture, positive pay, zero balance accounts, and sweep accounts. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.