Contrasting Eagle Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSI) and First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Eagle Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSI) and First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation and earnings.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

0.3% of Eagle Financial Services shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.0% of First Citizens BancShares shares are held by institutional investors. 12.3% of Eagle Financial Services shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.2% of First Citizens BancShares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Eagle Financial Services pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. First Citizens BancShares pays an annual dividend of $7.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Eagle Financial Services pays out 55.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Citizens BancShares pays out 4.6% 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. Eagle Financial Services has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and First Citizens BancShares has raised its dividend for 8 consecutive years. Eagle Financial Services is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Eagle Financial Services and First Citizens BancShares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Eagle Financial Services	9.30%	10.61%	0.87%
First Citizens BancShares	15.99%	11.06%	1.04%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Eagle Financial Services and First Citizens BancShares”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Eagle Financial Services	$112.88 million	1.77	$15.34 million	$2.23	16.66
First Citizens BancShares	$14.97 billion	1.52	$2.78 billion	$169.12	10.38

First Citizens BancShares has higher revenue and earnings than Eagle Financial Services. First Citizens BancShares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Eagle Financial Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Eagle Financial Services has a beta of 0.28, suggesting that its stock price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Citizens BancShares has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Eagle Financial Services and First Citizens BancShares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Eagle Financial Services	0	2	1	0	2.33
First Citizens BancShares	0	6	7	0	2.54

Eagle Financial Services currently has a consensus price target of $39.50, suggesting a potential upside of 6.30%. First Citizens BancShares has a consensus price target of $2,170.83, suggesting a potential upside of 23.63%. Given First Citizens BancShares’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe First Citizens BancShares is more favorable than Eagle Financial Services.

Summary

First Citizens BancShares beats Eagle Financial Services on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Eagle Financial Services

Eagle Financial Services, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Clarke County that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services in the Shenandoah Valley and Northern Virginia. The company’s deposit products include checking, NOW, money market, and regular savings accounts; and demand and time deposits. Its loan portfolio comprises one-to-four-family residential real estate, commercial real estate, construction and land development, and commercial and industrial loans, as well as secured and unsecured consumer loans, which include personal installment loans, personal lines of credit, automobile loans, and credit card loans. The company also offers personal and retirement plan services; investment services comprising tax-deferred annuities, IRAs and rollovers, mutual funds, retirement plans, college savings plans, life insurance, long term care insurance, fixed income investing, brokerage CDs, and full service or discount brokerage services; non-deposit investment products; and title insurance products. In addition, it provides ATM and debit cards; and telephone, internet, and mobile banking services, as well as other commercial deposit account services, such as ACH origination and remote deposit capture services. The company operates through twelve full-service branches, two loan production offices, one wealth management office, and one drive-through only facility, as well as 13 ATM locations in the Virginia communities of Berryville, Winchester, Boyce, Stephens City, Purcellville, Warrenton, Leesburg, Ashburn, and Fairfax. Eagle Financial Services, Inc. was founded in 1881 and is headquartered in Berryville, Virginia.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc. operates as the holding company for First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, and professionals. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, money market, and time deposit accounts. Its loan product portfolio comprises commercial construction and mortgage; and commercial and industrial leases, as well as small business administration loans. In addition, the company offers consumer loans, such as residential and revolving mortgage, consumer auto, and other consumer loans. Further, it provides wealth management services, including annuities, brokerage services, and third-party mutual funds, as well as investment management and advisory services. The company provides its products and services through its branch network. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. was founded in 1898 and is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina.