Origin Bancorp (NYSE:OBK) versus Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) Critical Survey

Origin Bancorp (NYSE:OBK) and Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) are both small-cap financial services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Origin Bancorp and Live Oak Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Origin Bancorp	11.98%	5.98%	0.72%
Live Oak Bancshares	5.71%	5.46%	0.42%

Dividends

Origin Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Live Oak Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Origin Bancorp pays out 26.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Live Oak Bancshares pays out 9.8% 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.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Origin Bancorp and Live Oak Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Origin Bancorp	$619.96 million	1.73	$76.49 million	$2.24	15.37
Live Oak Bancshares	$936.15 million	1.75	$77.47 million	$1.22	29.35

Live Oak Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than Origin Bancorp. Origin Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Live Oak Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Origin Bancorp has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Live Oak Bancshares has a beta of 1.81, indicating that its stock price is 81% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

54.7% of Origin Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.0% of Live Oak Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 6.4% of Origin Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 23.4% of Live Oak Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Origin Bancorp and Live Oak Bancshares, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Origin Bancorp	0	1	5	0	2.83
Live Oak Bancshares	0	2	0	1	2.67

Origin Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $43.20, suggesting a potential upside of 25.49%. Given Origin Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Origin Bancorp is more favorable than Live Oak Bancshares.

Summary

Live Oak Bancshares beats Origin Bancorp on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Origin Bancorp

Origin Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for Origin Bank that provides banking and financial services to small and medium-sized businesses, municipalities, high net worth individuals, and retail clients in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It offers noninterest and interest-bearing checking accounts, savings deposits, money market accounts, and time deposits; and offers commercial real estate, construction and land development, consumer, residential real estate, commercial and industrial, mortgage warehouse, residential mortgage, and paycheck protection program loans. The company also offers personal and commercial property, and casualty insurance products; and Internet banking and voice response information, mobile applications, cash management, overdraft protection, direct deposit, safe deposit box, U.S. savings bonds, and automatic account transfer services; and treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing facilities, peer-to-peer electronic pay solutions, and personal financial management solutions. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 44 banking centers. The company was founded in 1912 and is headquartered in Ruston, Louisiana.

About Live Oak Bancshares

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Live Oak Banking Company that provides various commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, and professionals in North Carolina, the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing demand, as well as interest-bearing checking, money market, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial and industrial loans; construction and development loans; owner occupied and non-owner occupied collateral commercial real estate loans; and commercial land loans. In addition, the company provides settlement, accounting, and securitization services for government guaranteed loans; wealth and investment management services to high-net-worth individuals and families; investment advisory services to a series of funds focused on providing venture capital to new and emerging financial technology companies; and an on-site restaurant location to company employees and business visitors. Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina.