Head-To-Head Contrast: Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) & BV Financial (NASDAQ:BVFL)

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) and BV Financial (NASDAQ:BVFL) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and BV Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nicolet Bankshares	$556.52 million	5.59	$150.69 million	$8.53	17.07
BV Financial	$52.43 million	3.38	$13.49 million	$1.47	13.80

Nicolet Bankshares has higher revenue and earnings than BV Financial. BV Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Nicolet Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Nicolet Bankshares has a beta of 0.74, suggesting that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BV Financial has a beta of 0.4, suggesting that its share price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

43.1% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.7% of BV Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.2% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 15.7% of BV Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and BV Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nicolet Bankshares	21.89%	13.92%	1.88%
BV Financial	25.74%	8.66%	1.83%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Nicolet Bankshares and BV Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nicolet Bankshares	0	1	5	0	2.83
BV Financial	0	1	0	0	2.00

Nicolet Bankshares currently has a consensus target price of $176.50, indicating a potential upside of 21.19%. Given Nicolet Bankshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Nicolet Bankshares is more favorable than BV Financial.

Summary

Nicolet Bankshares beats BV Financial on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Nicolet Bankshares

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Nicolet National Bank that provides banking products and services for businesses and individuals in Wisconsin and Michigan. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market accounts; various certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts. It also offers commercial loans, including commercial, industrial, and business loans and lines of credit; commercial real estate loans; agricultural (AG) production and AG real estate loans; commercial real estate investment real estate loans; construction and land development loans; residential real estate loans, such as residential first lien and junior lien mortgages, home equity loans, lines of credit, and residential construction loans; and consumer loans. In addition, the company provides cash management, international banking, personal brokerage, safe deposit boxes, and trust and fiduciary services, as well as wealth management and retirement plan services. Further, it offers mortgage refinancing; online services, such as commercial, retail, and trust online banking; automated bill payment, mobile banking deposits and account access, and remote deposit capture services; and other services consisting of wire transfers, debit cards, credit cards, pre-paid gift cards, direct deposits, and official bank checks, as well as facilitates crop insurance products. The company was formerly known as Green Bay Financial Corporation and changed its name to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. in March 2002. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

About BV Financial

BV Financial, Inc. operates as the holding company for BayVanguard Bank that provides various financial services to individuals and businesses in Maryland. The company offers checking and money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposits. Its loan products include real estate, home equity, construction, lot, auto, boat, and other personal loans; and commercial lending products, such as commercial equipment/installation, commercial real estate, construction, investment real estate, lines of credit, and SBA loans, as well as loans for short-term real estate purchase, renovation, and sale projects. The company offers ATM, overdraft, safe deposit, bill pay, remote deposit capture, ACH origination, merchant, and online banking services. BV Financial, Inc. was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.