Analyzing Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) and Omni Financial Services (OTCMKTS:OFSI)

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) and Omni Financial Services (OTCMKTS:OFSI) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability, valuation and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

Investar has a beta of 0.52, suggesting that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Omni Financial Services has a beta of 2.19, suggesting that its stock price is 119% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

50.2% of Investar shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.8% of Investar shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Investar and Omni Financial Services”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Investar	$90.24 million	2.88	$22.90 million	$2.14	12.39
Omni Financial Services	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Investar has higher revenue and earnings than Omni Financial Services.

Profitability

This table compares Investar and Omni Financial Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Investar	14.92%	9.20%	0.86%
Omni Financial Services	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Investar and Omni Financial Services, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Investar	0	1	1	1	3.00
Omni Financial Services	0	0	0	0	0.00

Investar presently has a consensus target price of $29.00, suggesting a potential upside of 9.35%. Given Investar’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Investar is more favorable than Omni Financial Services.

Summary

Investar beats Omni Financial Services on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Investar

Investar Holding Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Investar Bank that provides a range of commercial banking products to individuals, professionals, and small to medium-sized businesses in south Louisiana, southeast Texas, and Alabama in the United States. The company offers various deposit products and services, such as savings, checking, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as various certificates of deposit; debit and credit cards; internet, mobile, and video banking services; and reciprocal deposit products. It also provides commercial real estate loans; commercial and industrial loans, including working capital lines of credit and equipment loans; loans for the construction of commercial projects, and single family residential and multifamily properties; one-to-four family residential real estate loans, such as second mortgage loans; and consumer loans, such as secured and unsecured installment and term loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, and auto loans, as well as loans for personal, family, and household purposes. In addition, the company offers treasury management products, including remote deposit capture, lockbox payment processing, virtual vault, positive pay, ACH origination, wire transfer, investment sweep accounts, and business internet banking services. Further, it provides various other banking services, such as cashiers' checks, direct deposit of payroll and social security checks, night depository, bank-by-mail, automated teller machines, electronic statements, interactive teller machines, online account opening, and mobile wallet payment services. Investar Holding Corporation was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

About Omni Financial Services

OMNI Financial Services, Inc. provides various financial products and services to individuals, professionals, and business owners. The company offers deferred annuities, fixed annuities, and immediate annuities; and group medical, key employee, survivor life, disability, fixed life, long term care, and term life insurance products. It also provides college funding, retirement, and estate planning services. The company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida.