Head-To-Head Analysis: West Shore Bank (OTCMKTS:WSSH) versus Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF)

Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) and West Shore Bank (OTCMKTS:WSSH) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Franklin Financial Services and West Shore Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Franklin Financial Services	0	0	2	0	3.00
West Shore Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

Franklin Financial Services presently has a consensus target price of $59.00, suggesting a potential upside of 4.24%. Given Franklin Financial Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Franklin Financial Services is more favorable than West Shore Bank.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Franklin Financial Services and West Shore Bank”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Franklin Financial Services	$133.55 million	1.90	$21.23 million	$4.74	11.94
West Shore Bank	$48.89 million	0.99	$6.25 million	N/A	N/A

Franklin Financial Services has higher revenue and earnings than West Shore Bank.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

24.8% of Franklin Financial Services shares are held by institutional investors. 6.9% of Franklin Financial Services shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Franklin Financial Services has a beta of -0.1, suggesting that its share price is 110% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, West Shore Bank has a beta of -0.07, suggesting that its share price is 107% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Franklin Financial Services and West Shore Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Franklin Financial Services	15.90%	13.06%	0.94%
West Shore Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Franklin Financial Services pays an annual dividend of $1.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. West Shore Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Franklin Financial Services pays out 27.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Franklin Financial Services has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Summary

Franklin Financial Services beats West Shore Bank on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Franklin Financial Services

Franklin Financial Services Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Farmers and Merchants Trust Company of Chambersburg that provides commercial, retail banking, and trust services to businesses, individuals, governmental entities, and non-profit organizations in Pennsylvania. It offers various deposit products, including checking, savings, money management, and time deposit accounts, as well as demand deposits. The company also provides commercial real estate, construction and land development, commercial and industrial, and residential mortgage loans, as well as installment and revolving loans; consumer loans comprising unsecured personal lines of credit and installment loans; and secured and unsecured commercial and industrial loans, including accounts receivable and inventory financing, and commercial equipment financing. In addition, it offers various investment and trust services comprising estate planning and administration, corporate and personal trust fund management, pension, and profit sharing and other employee benefit funds management services, and custodial services, as well as non-trust related investment services; sells mutual funds, annuities, and insurance products; and offers safe deposit, pension, and fiduciary services. Further, the company engages in non-bank investment activities, such as venture capital investments. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.

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.