Head to Head Analysis: Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son (NYSE:NTB) and Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK)

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) and Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son (NYSE:NTB) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

Equity Bancshares has a beta of 0.8, meaning that its share price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son has a beta of 0.55, meaning that its share price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Equity Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son pays an annual dividend of $2.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Equity Bancshares pays out 52.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son pays out 35.1% 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. Equity Bancshares has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.7% of Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son shares are owned by institutional investors. 14.5% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Equity Bancshares and Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Equity Bancshares	20.34%	13.73%	1.50%
Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son	29.34%	22.43%	1.79%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Equity Bancshares and Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Equity Bancshares	$367.98 million	2.66	$22.73 million	$1.67	28.43
Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son	$628.42 million	3.91	$231.94 million	$5.69	10.30

Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son has higher revenue and earnings than Equity Bancshares. Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equity Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Equity Bancshares and Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Equity Bancshares	0	4	3	2	2.78
Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son	0	3	0	1	2.50

Equity Bancshares presently has a consensus price target of $53.67, indicating a potential upside of 13.04%. Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son has a consensus price target of $65.50, indicating a potential upside of 11.80%. Given Equity Bancshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Equity Bancshares is more favorable than Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son.

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.

About Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son

The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Ltd. provides community banking and wealth management business. The firm operates through the following geographical segments: Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Channel Islands and the UK, and Other. The Bermuda and Cayman segments offer retail banking and wealth management. The Channel Islands and the UK segment refers to the retail and corporate banking and wealth management. The Other segment includes operations in the jurisdictions of The Bahamas, Canada, Mauritius, Singapore and Switzerland. The company was founded in 1858 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.