Analyzing Ballston Spa Bancorp (OTCMKTS:BSPA) and Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) and Ballston Spa Bancorp (OTCMKTS:BSPA) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, risk, institutional ownership, dividends and valuation.

Volatility & Risk

Valley National Bancorp has a beta of 1.09, suggesting that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ballston Spa Bancorp has a beta of -0.29, suggesting that its stock price is 129% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Valley National Bancorp and Ballston Spa Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Valley National Bancorp	$1.82 billion	2.59	$498.51 million	$0.62	14.92
Ballston Spa Bancorp	$36.16 million	1.20	$4.78 million	N/A	N/A

Valley National Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Ballston Spa Bancorp.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

61.0% of Valley National Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 2.4% of Ballston Spa Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.9% of Valley National Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Valley National Bancorp and Ballston Spa Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Valley National Bancorp	9.42%	5.87%	0.62%
Ballston Spa Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Valley National Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. Ballston Spa Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Valley National Bancorp pays out 71.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Valley National Bancorp and Ballston Spa Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Valley National Bancorp	0	6	2	0	2.25
Ballston Spa Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $10.00, indicating a potential upside of 8.11%. Given Valley National Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Valley National Bancorp is more favorable than Ballston Spa Bancorp.

Summary

Valley National Bancorp beats Ballston Spa Bancorp on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Valley National Bancorp

Valley National Bancorp operates as the holding company for Valley National Bank that provides various commercial, private banking, retail, insurance, and wealth management financial services products. It operates through Consumer Banking, Commercial Banking, and Treasury and Corporate other segments. The company offers non-interest bearing, savings, NOW, money market, and time deposit accounts; commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, residential mortgage, and automobile loans; loans secured by the cash surrender value of life insurance; home equity loans and lines of credit; automobile financing; and secured and unsecured other consumer loans. It also invests in various securities and interest-bearing deposits with other banks; and provides international banking services, such as standby and documentary letters of credit, and related products, as well as foreign exchange transactions, documentary collections, and foreign wire transfers services. In addition, the company offers investment services for individuals and small to medium sized businesses; and trusts investment strategies designed for various investment profiles and objectives. Further, it provides trust services, such as living and testamentary trusts, investment management, custodial and escrow services, and estate administration to individuals; tax credit advisory services; brokerage services; property and casualty, life, health, and title insurance agency services; and health care equipment lending and other commercial equipment leasing services, as well as owns real estate related investments. Additionally, the company offers online, mobile, and telephone banking services; receivable, payment, and security solution, merchant, payroll processing, and liquidity services; credit cards; and drive-in and night deposit, automated teller machine, remote deposit capture, and safe deposit facility services. Valley National Bancorp was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey.

About Ballston Spa Bancorp

Ballston Spa Bancorp, Inc. operates as a holding company for Ballston Spa National Bank that provides a range of banking, financing, fiduciary, brokerage, and other financial services to corporate, municipal, and individual customers in the United States. It offers checking, money market, savings, health savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; loan products, such as mortgage and home construction, improvement, and equity loans, auto, boat, RV, personal, commercial, and small business loans, as well as lines of credit and government programs; and debits and credit cards. The company also provides personal investment services, which include annuities, college savings plans, mutual funds, and life and long term care insurance products; retirement plans; college planning services; investment and asset management; trusteeship; estate settlement; special needs and disability trusts; and wealth management services. In addition, the company offers treasury management services; and merchant and payment processing services, as well as online and mobile banking, and digital payments. The company was founded in 1838 and is based in Ballston Spa, New York.