Reviewing Signature Bank (NASDAQ:SBNY) and Atlantic Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:AUB)

Atlantic Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:AUB) and Signature Bank (NASDAQ:SBNY) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and earnings.

Volatility & Risk

Atlantic Union Bankshares has a beta of 0.82, suggesting that its share price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Signature Bank has a beta of 12.87, suggesting that its share price is 1,187% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Atlantic Union Bankshares and Signature Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Atlantic Union Bankshares	15.53%	8.50%	1.06%
Signature Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

78.6% of Atlantic Union Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 11.1% of Signature Bank shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Atlantic Union Bankshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Signature Bank shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Atlantic Union Bankshares and Signature Bank”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Atlantic Union Bankshares	$1.37 billion	3.61	$209.13 million	$2.04	17.06
Signature Bank	$2.70 billion	0.02	$1.34 billion	$4.65	0.14

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

Dividends

Atlantic Union Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Signature Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 107.7%. Atlantic Union Bankshares pays out 72.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Signature Bank pays out 15.1% 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. Atlantic Union Bankshares has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Signature Bank is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Atlantic Union Bankshares and Signature Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Atlantic Union Bankshares	0	3	5	1	2.78
Signature Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

Atlantic Union Bankshares currently has a consensus target price of $43.17, suggesting a potential upside of 24.06%. Given Atlantic Union Bankshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Atlantic Union Bankshares is more favorable than Signature Bank.

Summary

Atlantic Union Bankshares beats Signature Bank on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Atlantic Union Bankshares

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Atlantic Union Bank that provides banking and related financial products and services to consumers and businesses in the United States. It operates in two segments, Wholesale Banking and Consumer Banking. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, time deposit, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit; and other depository services. It also provides loans for commercial, industrial, residential mortgage, and consumer purposes, as well as debit and credit cards. In addition, it provides treasury management and capital market, wealth management, private banking, trust, financial and retirement planning, brokerage, investment management, equipment finance, mortgage banking, and insurance products and services. The company offers products and services through full-service branches and ATMs, as well as through its mobile and internet banking. The company was formerly known as Union Bankshares Corporation and changed its name to Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation in May 2019. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Glen Allen, Virginia.

About Signature Bank

As of March 12, 2023, Signature Bank went out of business. Previously, the company provided digital assets banking services and comprised of certain loan portfolios. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is based in New York, New York. Signature Bank now trades on OTCPK.