Comparing South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) & Thomasville Bancshares (OTCMKTS:THVB)

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) and Thomasville Bancshares (OTCMKTS:THVB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for South Plains Financial and Thomasville Bancshares, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
South Plains Financial	0	2	4	0	2.67
Thomasville Bancshares	0	0	0	0	0.00

South Plains Financial presently has a consensus target price of $44.75, indicating a potential upside of 14.04%. Given South Plains Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe South Plains Financial is more favorable than Thomasville Bancshares.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

55.0% of South Plains Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 24.6% of South Plains Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares South Plains Financial and Thomasville Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
South Plains Financial	20.09%	13.16%	1.37%
Thomasville Bancshares	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares South Plains Financial and Thomasville Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
South Plains Financial	$288.97 million	2.21	$49.72 million	$3.50	11.21
Thomasville Bancshares	$137.59 million	4.32	$39.27 million	N/A	N/A

South Plains Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Thomasville Bancshares.

Dividends

South Plains Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Thomasville Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $2.90 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. South Plains Financial pays out 18.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. South Plains Financial has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years.

Risk & Volatility

South Plains Financial has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Thomasville Bancshares has a beta of 0.19, indicating that its stock price is 81% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

South Plains Financial beats Thomasville Bancshares on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for City Bank that provides commercial and consumer financial services to small and medium-sized businesses and individuals. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It offers deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing products, savings accounts, and certificate of deposits. The company also provides commercial real estate loans; general and specialized commercial loans, including agricultural production and real estate, energy, finance, investment, and insurance loans, as well as loans to goods, services, restaurant and retail, construction, and other industries; residential construction loans; and 1-4 family residential loans, auto loans, and other loans for recreational vehicles or other purposes. In addition, it offers crop insurance products; trust products and services; investment services; mortgage banking services; online and mobile banking services; and debit and credit cards. The company was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Lubbock, Texas.

About Thomasville Bancshares

Thomasville Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Thomasville National Bank that provides a range of banking services to individual and corporate customers primarily in Thomas and Glynn counties, Georgia, Leon County, Florida, and the surrounding counties. The company offers checking and savings accounts; money market accounts; and certificates of deposits. It also provides commercial real estate mortgage loans, such as non-farm and non-residential commercial real estate loans, construction loans for commercial businesses, multifamily loans secured by income producing properties, and farmland; and 1-4 family residential loans, including first mortgage liens, junior liens, and home equity lines. In addition, the company offers commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; consumer loans comprising direct consumer instalment loans, overdrafts, and other revolving credit loans and educational loans; and loans to municipalities and development authorities. Further, it provides trust and money management services. The company was incorporated in 1995 and is based in Thomasville, Georgia.