Head to Head Survey: ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) and First Horizon (NYSE:FHN)

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) and ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) 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.

Profitability

This table compares First Horizon and ACNB’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Horizon	17.10%	10.55%	1.13%
ACNB	17.22%	10.95%	1.34%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for First Horizon and ACNB, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Horizon	0	6	10	1	2.71
ACNB	0	0	4	0	3.00

First Horizon currently has a consensus target price of $23.28, indicating a potential upside of 4.89%. ACNB has a consensus target price of $48.40, indicating a potential upside of 11.34%. Given ACNB’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe ACNB is more favorable than First Horizon.

Dividends

First Horizon pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. ACNB pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. First Horizon pays out 41.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. ACNB pays out 46.9% 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. ACNB has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years. ACNB is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Horizon and ACNB”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Horizon	$5.03 billion	2.24	$775.00 million	$1.44	15.41
ACNB	$132.20 million	3.44	$31.85 million	$2.90	14.99

First Horizon has higher revenue and earnings than ACNB. ACNB is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Horizon, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

80.3% of First Horizon shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 32.4% of ACNB shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of First Horizon shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.5% of ACNB shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

First Horizon has a beta of 0.61, meaning that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ACNB has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its share price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

ACNB beats First Horizon on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Horizon

First Horizon Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Horizon Bank that provides various financial services. The company operates through Regional Banking and Specialty Banking segments. It offers general banking services for consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments. The company also accepts deposits; provides underwriting services for bank-eligible securities and other fixed-income securities by financial subsidiaries; sells loans and derivatives; financial planning; and offers investment and financial advisory services. In addition, it offers mortgage banking; loan syndications; brokerage services; commercial and business banking for business enterprises, consumer banking, and private client and wealth management services; capital markets, professional commercial real estate, mortgage warehouse and asset-based lending, franchise and equipment finance, tax credit finance, energy and healthcare finance, asset management, and corporate and correspondent banking services. Further, the company provides transaction processing services including check clearing services and remittance processing, credit cards, investment, and sale of mutual fund and retail insurances, as well as trust, fiduciary, and agency services. First Horizon Corporation was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee.

About ACNB

ACNB Corporation, a financial holding company, offers banking, insurance, and financial services to individual, business, and government customers in the United States. The company provides checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits and debit cards. It also offers commercial lending products, such as commercial mortgages, real estate development and construction loans, accounts receivable and inventory financing, and agricultural and governmental loans; consumer lending products, including home equity loans and lines of credit, automobile and recreational vehicle loans, manufactured housing loans, and personal lines of credit; and mortgage lending programs include personal residential mortgages, and residential construction and investment mortgage loans. In addition, the company provides other services that are related to testamentary trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable remainder trusts, guardianships, powers of attorney, custodial accounts, and investment management and advisory accounts; and retail brokerage services. Further, it acts as a trustee to invest in, protect, manage, and distribute financial assets. Additionally, the company offers property and casualty, health, life, and disability insurance products to commercial and personal clients; and online, telephone, and mobile banking, as well as automated teller machine services. ACNB Corporation was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.