Reviewing WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) and Home Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBCP)

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) and Home Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBCP) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, earnings and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares WesBanco and Home Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
WesBanco	$1.44 billion	2.32	$223.10 million	$2.07	16.76
Home Bancorp	$209.23 million	2.30	$46.06 million	$5.87	10.46

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

Dividends

WesBanco pays an annual dividend of $1.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. Home Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. WesBanco pays out 73.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Home Bancorp pays out 21.1% 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. WesBanco has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and Home Bancorp has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years. WesBanco is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares WesBanco and Home Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
WesBanco	15.51%	8.81%	1.19%
Home Bancorp	22.01%	11.03%	1.32%

Volatility and Risk

WesBanco has a beta of 0.74, meaning that its stock price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Home Bancorp has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

61.4% of WesBanco shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.4% of Home Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 2.1% of WesBanco shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.9% of Home Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for WesBanco and Home Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
WesBanco	0	1	3	2	3.17
Home Bancorp	0	2	3	0	2.60

WesBanco presently has a consensus price target of $40.60, suggesting a potential upside of 17.00%. Home Bancorp has a consensus price target of $63.00, suggesting a potential upside of 2.62%. Given WesBanco’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe WesBanco is more favorable than Home Bancorp.

Summary

WesBanco beats Home Bancorp on 11 of the 17 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 Home Bancorp

Home Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Home Bank, National Association that provides various banking products and services in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. It offers deposit products, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking, money market, savings, NOW, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company also provides various loan products comprising one-to four-family first mortgage loans, home equity loans and lines, commercial real estate loans, construction and land loans, multi-family residential loans, commercial and industrial loans, and consumer loans. In addition, it invests in securities; and offers credit cards and online banking services. Home Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana.