Head to Head Review: Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) and Lyons Bancorp (OTCMKTS:LYBC)

Lyons Bancorp (OTCMKTS:LYBC) and Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, institutional ownership and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Lyons Bancorp and Valley National Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lyons Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A
Valley National Bancorp	9.42%	5.87%	0.62%

Dividends

Lyons Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Valley National Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Lyons Bancorp pays out 36.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Valley National Bancorp pays out 71.0% 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.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Lyons Bancorp and Valley National Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lyons Bancorp	$70.28 million	2.00	$17.35 million	$4.45	9.42
Valley National Bancorp	$3.36 billion	1.54	$498.51 million	$0.62	16.44

Valley National Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Lyons Bancorp. Lyons Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Valley National Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Lyons Bancorp has a beta of -0.07, meaning that its share price is 107% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Valley National Bancorp has a beta of 1.07, meaning that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.3% of Lyons Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 61.0% of Valley National Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Valley National Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Lyons Bancorp and Valley National Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lyons Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00
Valley National Bancorp	0	6	2	0	2.25

Valley National Bancorp has a consensus target price of $9.88, indicating a potential downside of 3.09%. Given Valley National Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Valley National Bancorp is more favorable than Lyons Bancorp.

Summary

Valley National Bancorp beats Lyons Bancorp on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lyons Bancorp

Lyons Bancorp Inc. operates as a financial holding company for The Lyons National Bank that provides a range of commercial and retail banking services to individual and small business customers. It offers checking accounts, savings accounts, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit; commercial real estate, agricultural real estate, commercial and agricultural, and consumer instalment loans; and residential real estate loans, such as classes for 1-4 family and home equity loans, as well as consumer loans comprising recreational, auto, personal, personal line of credit, and home improvement loans; financial services, including retirement strategy, investment management, education savings, life insurance, long-term care insurance, and employer and employee benefit services. The company also provides mortgage, online and mobile banking, telephone banking, credit and debit card, online cash management, merchant, safe deposit boxes, wire transfer, traveller program, online bill pay, e-statements, money orders, and official checks services. It operates branches in Wayne, Onondaga, Yates, Ontario, Monroe, Seneca, and Cayuga counties, New York. The company was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in Lyons, New York.

About Valley National Bancorp

Valley National Bancorp operates as the holding company for Valley National Bank that provides various commercial, private banking, retail, insurance, and wealth management financial services products. It operates through Consumer Banking, Commercial Banking, and Treasury and Corporate other segments. The company offers non-interest bearing, savings, NOW, money market, and time deposit accounts; commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, residential mortgage, and automobile loans; loans secured by the cash surrender value of life insurance; home equity loans and lines of credit; automobile financing; and secured and unsecured other consumer loans. It also invests in various securities and interest-bearing deposits with other banks; and provides international banking services, such as standby and documentary letters of credit, and related products, as well as foreign exchange transactions, documentary collections, and foreign wire transfers services. In addition, the company offers investment services for individuals and small to medium sized businesses; and trusts investment strategies designed for various investment profiles and objectives. Further, it provides trust services, such as living and testamentary trusts, investment management, custodial and escrow services, and estate administration to individuals; tax credit advisory services; brokerage services; property and casualty, life, health, and title insurance agency services; and health care equipment lending and other commercial equipment leasing services, as well as owns real estate related investments. Additionally, the company offers online, mobile, and telephone banking services; receivable, payment, and security solution, merchant, payroll processing, and liquidity services; credit cards; and drive-in and night deposit, automated teller machine, remote deposit capture, and safe deposit facility services. Valley National Bancorp was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey.