Head to Head Comparison: DNB Bank ASA (OTCMKTS:DNBBY) and Intesa Sanpaolo (OTCMKTS:ISNPY)

DNB Bank ASA (OTCMKTS:DNBBY) and Intesa Sanpaolo (OTCMKTS:ISNPY) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and analyst recommendations.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

1.2% of Intesa Sanpaolo shares are owned by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

DNB Bank ASA has a beta of 0.64, suggesting that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Intesa Sanpaolo has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares DNB Bank ASA and Intesa Sanpaolo’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
DNB Bank ASA	21.34%	14.02%	1.09%
Intesa Sanpaolo	25.19%	14.10%	1.02%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares DNB Bank ASA and Intesa Sanpaolo”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
DNB Bank ASA	$19.14 billion	2.48	$4.20 billion	$2.80	10.94
Intesa Sanpaolo	$43.96 billion	2.88	$10.54 billion	$3.72	11.55

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for DNB Bank ASA and Intesa Sanpaolo, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
DNB Bank ASA	2	3	2	0	2.00
Intesa Sanpaolo	0	3	4	1	2.75

Dividends

DNB Bank ASA pays an annual dividend of $1.42 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Intesa Sanpaolo pays an annual dividend of $1.91 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. DNB Bank ASA pays out 50.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Intesa Sanpaolo pays out 51.3% 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. DNB Bank ASA is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

Intesa Sanpaolo beats DNB Bank ASA on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About DNB Bank ASA

DNB Bank ASA provides financial services for individual and business customers in Norway and internationally. The company offers savings, current, and pension accounts; fixed rate and security deposits; home and cabin mortgages, car and consumer loans, business loans, and refinancing; car, house, home contents, travel, personal, and non-life insurance product; payment services; and online and mobile banking services, as well as cards. It also provides overdraft facilities; leasing services; factoring, supply chain, and receivable purchase financing services; bank guarantee, secure trading, documentary collection, and letter of credit services; investment banking services, such as mergers and acquisition, equity and debt capital market, shares and securities, mutual funds and trading, and bonds and commodities; and private financing, as well as equity trading, foreign exchange, interest rates, and risk advisory services. In addition, the company offers treasury management, working capital, trade finance, auto lease and equipment financing, and corporate finance services, as well as act as an estate agents. DNB Bank ASA was founded in 1822 and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway.

About Intesa Sanpaolo

Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. provides various financial products and services primarily in Italy. It operates through six segments: Banca dei Territori, IMI Corporate & Investment Banking, International Subsidiary Banks, Asset Management, Private Banking, and Insurance. The company offers lending and deposit products; private and commercial banking, corporate and transaction banking, structured finance, investment banking, public finance, and capital markets; industrial credit, leasing, and factoring; asset management; life and non-life insurance and pension products; asset and wealth management; private investments; and bancassurance products. The company serves individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, non-profit customers, corporates and financial institutions, public administration, private clients and high net worth individuals, institutional clientele, and other customers. Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Turin, Italy.