Reviewing WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) and Shore Community Bank (OTCMKTS:SHRC)

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) and Shore Community Bank (OTCMKTS:SHRC) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and earnings.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

61.4% of WesBanco shares are held by institutional investors. 2.8% of WesBanco shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares WesBanco and Shore Community Bank”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
WesBanco	$600.17 million	3.32	$151.51 million	$2.24	13.30
Shore Community Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

WesBanco has higher revenue and earnings than Shore Community Bank.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for WesBanco and Shore Community Bank, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
WesBanco	0	2	4	1	2.86
Shore Community Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

WesBanco currently has a consensus target price of $39.43, indicating a potential upside of 32.36%. Given WesBanco’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe WesBanco is more favorable than Shore Community Bank.

Profitability

This table compares WesBanco and Shore Community Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
WesBanco	15.89%	6.30%	0.86%
Shore Community Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

WesBanco beats Shore Community Bank on 10 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc. that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services. It offers commercial demand, individual demand, and time deposit accounts; commercial, mortgage and individual installment loans; retail loans, such as residential real estate mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, and loans for other consumer purposes; installment loans to finance the purchase of automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, boats, and other recreational vehicles, as well as home equity installment loans, unsecured home improvement loans, and revolving lines of credit; and various non-traditional offerings, such as insurance and securities brokerage services. The company also provides trust services; and various alternative investment products, including mutual funds and annuities. In addition, it acts as an agency that specializes in property, casualty, life, and title insurance, as well as benefit plan sales and administration to personal and commercial clients; provides broker dealer and discount brokerage services; holds investment securities and loans; and holds and leases commercial real estate properties, as well as acts as an investment adviser to a family of mutual funds. WesBanco, Inc. was founded in 1870 and is headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia.

About Shore Community Bank

Shore Community Bank, a state chartered bank, provides banking products and services to businesses and individuals in Ocean County, New Jersey. The company's deposit products include checking accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, money market accounts, visa/mastercard merchant deposit accounts, and payroll/direct deposit accounts. Its loan portfolio comprises personal, home equity, term, and demand loans; lines of credit; letters of credit; commercial mortgages; and construction lending. The company also offers direct deposit and electronic transfer, wire transfer, ACH origination, night depository, tenant rent security, signature guarantee, remote deposit, notary, and automated asset management services; safe deposit boxes, escrow accounts, and debit cards, as well as online and telephone banking services. As of April 28, 2016, it operated five banking offices located in Toms River, Jackson, and Manahawkin, New Jersey. Shore Community Bank was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Toms River, New Jersey.