Reviewing West Shore Bank (OTCMKTS:WSSH) & Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

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

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares West Shore Bank and Valley National Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
West Shore Bank	$36.87 million	1.03	$4.41 million	N/A	N/A
Valley National Bancorp	$3.58 billion	1.67	$380.27 million	$0.78	13.69

Valley National Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than West Shore Bank.

Risk and Volatility

West Shore Bank has a beta of -0.04, meaning that its stock price is 104% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Valley National Bancorp has a beta of 1.13, meaning that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

West Shore Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Valley National Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Valley National Bancorp pays out 56.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

61.0% of Valley National Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Valley National Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for West Shore Bank and Valley National Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
West Shore Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00
Valley National Bancorp	0	2	12	0	2.86

Valley National Bancorp has a consensus target price of $12.29, suggesting a potential upside of 15.03%. Given Valley National Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Valley National Bancorp is more favorable than West Shore Bank.

Profitability

This table compares West Shore Bank and Valley National Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
West Shore Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A
Valley National Bancorp	12.87%	5.89%	0.66%

Summary

Valley National Bancorp beats West Shore Bank on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About West Shore Bank

West Shore Bank Corp. operates as the bank holding company for West Shore Bank that provides various banking products and services for individuals and businesses. The company accepts checking, saving, money market, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. Its loan products include auto, recreational, personal term, commercial real estate, small business administration, municipal, business term, and home mortgage and equity loans; business lines of credit; and letters of credit. The company also offers ATM/debit, credit, and gift and travel cards; wealth planning process, investment management, trusts and estates, retirement planning, west shore investment services; savings bonds; and direct deposit, overdraft, safe deposit boxes, wire transfer, remote deposit capture, merchant card, ACH and wire, sweep accounts, positive pay, bill pay, and online and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1898 and is based in Ludington, Michigan.

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.