Head to Head Comparison: Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) and SouthState Bank (NYSE:SSB)

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) and SouthState Bank (NYSE:SSB) are both financial services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Equity Bancshares and SouthState Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Equity Bancshares	5.01%	12.13%	1.39%
SouthState Bank	19.27%	10.23%	1.34%

Volatility & Risk

Equity Bancshares has a beta of 0.82, indicating that its share price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SouthState Bank has a beta of 0.68, indicating that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.8% of SouthState Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.6% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of SouthState Bank shares are owned by 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.

Dividends

Equity Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. SouthState Bank pays an annual dividend of $2.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Equity Bancshares pays out 60.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. SouthState Bank pays out 35.8% 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. SouthState Bank has increased its dividend for 13 consecutive years. SouthState Bank is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Equity Bancshares and SouthState Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Equity Bancshares	0	0	1	2	3.67
SouthState Bank	0	2	10	3	3.07

SouthState Bank has a consensus price target of $117.08, suggesting a potential upside of 28.18%. Given SouthState Bank’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe SouthState Bank is more favorable than Equity Bancshares.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Equity Bancshares and SouthState Bank”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Equity Bancshares	$335.67 million	2.22	$62.62 million	$1.20	32.27
SouthState Bank	$2.44 billion	3.78	$534.78 million	$6.71	13.61

SouthState Bank has higher revenue and earnings than Equity Bancshares. SouthState Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equity Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

SouthState Bank beats Equity Bancshares on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Equity Bancshares

Equity Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Equity Bank that provides a range of banking, mortgage banking, and financial services to individual and corporate customers. The company accepts various demand, savings, money market, and time deposits. Its loan products include commercial and industrial, commercial real estate-backed, commercial lines of credit, working capital, term, equipment financing, acquisition, expansion and development, borrowing base, real estate construction, homebuilder, agricultural, government guaranteed, and other loan products to national and regional companies, restaurant franchisees, hoteliers, real estate developers, manufacturing and industrial companies, agribusiness companies, and other businesses. The company’s loan products also comprise various consumer loans to individuals and professionals, including residential real estate loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, installment loans, unsecured and secured personal lines of credit, overdraft protection, and letters of credit. It also provides debit cards; online banking solutions, such as access to account balances, online transfers, online bill payment, and electronic delivery of customer statements; mobile banking solutions comprising remote check deposits with mobile bill pay; ATMs; and treasury management, wire transfer, automated clearing house, and stop payment services. In addition, the company offers cash management deposit products, such as lockbox, remote deposit capture, positive pay, reverse positive pay, account reconciliation services, zero balance accounts, and sweep accounts, as well as banking services through telephone, mail, and personal appointments. As of December 31, 2021, it operated a network of 69 branches in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Wichita, Kansas.

About SouthState Bank

SouthState Corporation operates as the bank holding company for SouthState Bank, National Association that provides a range of banking services and products to individuals and companies. It accepts checking accounts, savings deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, certificates of deposits, money market accounts, and other time deposits. The company also offers commercial real estate loans, residential real estate loans, commercial, and industrial loans, as well as consumer loans, including auto, boat, and personal installment loans. In addition, it provides debit card, mobile and funds transfer products, and treasury management services comprising merchant, automated clearing house, lock-box, remote deposit capture, and other treasury services. Further, the company offers safe deposit boxes, bank money orders, wire transfer, brokerage services, and alternative investment products, including annuities, mutual funds, and trust and asset management services; and credit cards, letters of credit, and home equity lines of credit. As of December 31, 2021, it served customers through 281 branches in Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. SouthState Corporation also serves its customers through online, mobile, and telephone banking platforms. The company was formerly known as First Financial Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to SouthState Corporation in July 2013. SouthState Corporation was founded in 1933 and is headquartered in Winter Haven, Florida.