Head-To-Head Review: Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) versus Virginia National Bankshares (NASDAQ:VABK)

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) and Virginia National Bankshares (NASDAQ:VABK) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and dividends.

Dividends

Wells Fargo & Company pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Virginia National Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Wells Fargo & Company pays out 32.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Virginia National Bankshares pays out 41.5% 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Wells Fargo & Company and Virginia National Bankshares, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Wells Fargo & Company	0	12	8	1	2.48
Virginia National Bankshares	0	0	0	0	N/A

Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus price target of $61.82, indicating a potential downside of 1.94%. Given Wells Fargo & Company’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Wells Fargo & Company is more favorable than Virginia National Bankshares.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Wells Fargo & Company and Virginia National Bankshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Wells Fargo & Company	$82.40 billion	2.67	$19.14 billion	$4.87	12.94
Virginia National Bankshares	$52.24 million	4.01	$19.26 million	$3.18	12.27

Wells Fargo & Company has higher revenue and earnings than Virginia National Bankshares. Virginia National Bankshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Wells Fargo & Company, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Wells Fargo & Company and Virginia National Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Wells Fargo & Company	15.17%	12.30%	1.04%
Virginia National Bankshares	19.25%	10.50%	0.98%

Risk and Volatility

Wells Fargo & Company has a beta of 1.16, indicating that its share price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Virginia National Bankshares has a beta of 0.45, indicating that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

75.9% of Wells Fargo & Company shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 37.4% of Virginia National Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Wells Fargo & Company shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 12.6% of Virginia National Bankshares shares are held 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.

Summary

Wells Fargo & Company beats Virginia National Bankshares on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company, a financial services company, provides diversified banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management. The Consumer Banking and Lending segment offers diversified financial products and services for consumers and small businesses. Its financial products and services include checking and savings accounts, and credit and debit cards, as well as home, auto, personal, and small business lending services. The Commercial Banking segment provides financial solutions to private, family owned, and certain public companies. Its products and services include banking and credit products across various industry sectors and municipalities, secured lending and lease products, and treasury management services. The Corporate and Investment Banking segment offers a suite of capital markets, banking, and financial products and services, such as corporate banking, investment banking, treasury management, commercial real estate lending and servicing, equity, and fixed income solutions, as well as sales, trading, and research capabilities services to corporate, commercial real estate, government, and institutional clients. The Wealth and Investment Management segment provides personalized wealth management, brokerage, financial planning, lending, private banking, and trust and fiduciary products and services to affluent, high-net worth, and ultra-high-net worth clients. It also operates through financial advisors in brokerage and wealth offices, consumer bank branches, independent offices, and digitally through WellsTrade and Intuitive Investor. The company was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

About Virginia National Bankshares

Virginia National Bankshares Corporation operates as the holding company for Virginia National Bank that provides a range of commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through Bank, Sturman Wealth Advisors, VNB Trust and Estate Services, and Masonry Capital segments. It provides checking accounts, demand deposits, NOW accounts, money market deposit accounts, time deposits, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, and other depository services. In addition, the company offers commercial and industrial loans, real estate construction and land loans, commercial real estate loans, and 1-4 family residential mortgages, as well as consumer loans comprising student loans, revolving credit, and other fixed payment loans. Further, it provides automated teller machines, internet banking, treasury, and cash management services; merchant and debit card services; and wealth and investment advisory, and brokerage services. Additionally, the company offers investment management, corporate trustee, trust and estate administration, IRA administration, house investment management, and custody services. It serves individuals, businesses, and charitable organizations in the Charlottesville/Albemarle County, Fauquier County, Manassas, Prince William County, Richmond, and Winchester market areas in Virginia. Virginia National Bankshares Corporation was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia.