Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT) and Ohio Valley Banc (NASDAQ:OVBC) Head-To-Head Survey

Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT) and Ohio Valley Banc (NASDAQ:OVBC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Eagle Bancorp Montana and Ohio Valley Banc’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Eagle Bancorp Montana	12.16%	8.29%	0.74%
Ohio Valley Banc	16.05%	9.29%	0.98%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Eagle Bancorp Montana and Ohio Valley Banc”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Eagle Bancorp Montana	$127.08 million	1.49	$14.84 million	$1.98	11.99
Ohio Valley Banc	$94.21 million	2.47	$15.60 million	$3.28	15.09

Ohio Valley Banc has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Eagle Bancorp Montana. Eagle Bancorp Montana is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ohio Valley Banc, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Eagle Bancorp Montana has a beta of 0.35, indicating that its share price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ohio Valley Banc has a beta of 0.02, indicating that its share price is 98% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Eagle Bancorp Montana and Ohio Valley Banc, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Eagle Bancorp Montana	0	3	0	1	2.50
Ohio Valley Banc	0	0	1	0	3.00

Eagle Bancorp Montana currently has a consensus price target of $23.50, indicating a potential downside of 1.05%. Given Eagle Bancorp Montana’s higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Eagle Bancorp Montana is more favorable than Ohio Valley Banc.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

35.7% of Eagle Bancorp Montana shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 22.1% of Ohio Valley Banc shares are held by institutional investors. 5.8% of Eagle Bancorp Montana shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.2% of Ohio Valley Banc shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Eagle Bancorp Montana pays an annual dividend of $0.58 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ohio Valley Banc pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Eagle Bancorp Montana pays out 29.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Ohio Valley Banc pays out 30.5% 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. Eagle Bancorp Montana has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years and Ohio Valley Banc has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Eagle Bancorp Montana is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Ohio Valley Banc beats Eagle Bancorp Montana on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Eagle Bancorp Montana

Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Opportunity Bank of Montana that provides various retail banking products and services to small businesses and individuals in Montana. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit accounts. The company also provides 1-4 family residential mortgage loans, such as residential mortgages and construction of residential properties; commercial real estate loans, including multi-family dwellings, nonresidential property, commercial construction and development, and farmland loans; and second mortgage/home equity loans. In addition, it offers consumer loans, such as loans secured by collateral other than real estate, such as automobiles, recreational vehicles, and boats; personal loans and lines of credit; commercial business loans consisting of business loans and lines of credit on a secured and unsecured basis; construction loans; agricultural loans; and mortgage loan services. The company operates full-service branches and automated teller machines. Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Helena, Montana.

About Ohio Valley Banc

Ohio Valley Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Ohio Valley Bank Company that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. The company operates in two segments, Banking and Consumer Finance. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, time, and money market accounts, as well as individual retirement accounts, demand deposits, NOW accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides various residential real estate loans, including one-to four-family residential mortgages; commercial loans for securing equipment, inventory, stock, commercial real estate, and rental property; and consumer loans secured by automobiles, mobile homes, recreational vehicles, and other personal property, as well as personal loans, unsecured credit card receivables, floor plan and student loans, and construction loans. In addition, it offers safe deposit box, wire transfer, credit card, home equity loans, and Internet banking services; and financial management online services, such as cash management and news updates related to repossession auctions, current rates, and general bank news. Further, the company provides automatic teller machines (ATMs), consumer finance, seasonal tax preparation, commercial property, and various liability insurance services, as well as trust and online-only consumer direct mortgage services. The company owns and operates ATMs, including off-site ATMs. It operates offices in Ohio and West Virginia. The company was founded in 1872 and is based in Gallipolis, Ohio.