Critical Comparison: Orrstown Financial Services (NASDAQ:ORRF) and Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN)

Benchmark Bankshares (OTCMKTS:BMBN) and Orrstown Financial Services (NASDAQ:ORRF) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and profitability.

Dividends

Benchmark Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Orrstown Financial Services pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Orrstown Financial Services pays out 23.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Orrstown Financial Services has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Benchmark Bankshares and Orrstown Financial Services’ revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Benchmark Bankshares	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Orrstown Financial Services	$129.31 million	2.15	$35.66 million	$3.41	7.61

Orrstown Financial Services has higher revenue and earnings than Benchmark Bankshares.

Volatility and Risk

Benchmark Bankshares has a beta of 0.29, suggesting that its share price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Orrstown Financial Services has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Benchmark Bankshares and Orrstown Financial Services, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Benchmark Bankshares	0	0	0	0	N/A
Orrstown Financial Services	0	1	1	0	2.50

Orrstown Financial Services has a consensus price target of $28.50, suggesting a potential upside of 9.78%. Given Orrstown Financial Services’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Orrstown Financial Services is more favorable than Benchmark Bankshares.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

3.2% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 44.3% of Orrstown Financial Services shares are held by institutional investors. 14.0% of Benchmark Bankshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.3% of Orrstown Financial Services shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Benchmark Bankshares and Orrstown Financial Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Benchmark Bankshares	N/A	N/A	N/A
Orrstown Financial Services	20.32%	14.74%	1.21%

Summary

Orrstown Financial Services beats Benchmark Bankshares on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Benchmark Bankshares

Benchmark Bankshares, Inc. operates as the holding company for Benchmark Community Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, such as checking, saving, commercial services, and youth accounts. Its loan products include personal, mortgage, other real estate, business, auto, and student loans. The company also offers credit and debit cards; wealth management services comprising financial solutions, financial and retirement planning, and portfolio management, as well as estate, charitable giving, and trust services; and reorder checks, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, bill pay, and internet and mobile banking services. Benchmark Bankshares, Inc. was founded in 1971 and is based in Kenbridge, Virginia.

About Orrstown Financial Services

Orrstown Financial Services, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for Orrstown Bank that provides commercial banking and financial advisory services to retail, commercial, non-profit, and government clients in the United States. It accepts various deposits, including checking, savings, time, demand, and money market deposits, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also offers commercial loans, such as commercial real estate, equipment, construction, working capital, and other commercial purpose loans, as well as industrial loans; consumer loans, such as home equity and other consumer loans, as well as home equity lines of credit; residential mortgage loans; acquisition and development loans; municipal loans; and installment and other loans. In addition, it provides renders services as trustee, executor, administrator, guardian, managing agent, custodian, and investment advisor, as well as other fiduciary services under the Orrstown Financial Advisors name; and retail brokerage services through a third-party broker/dealer arrangement. Further, the company offers fiduciary, investment advisory, insurance, and brokerage services. Orrstown Financial Services, Inc. was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania.