Investar (ISTR) Competitors

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) and Equity Bancshares (NASDAQ:EQBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, media sentiment, institutional ownership, community ranking, risk and dividends.

Does the media prefer ISTR or EQBK?

In the previous week, Equity Bancshares had 4 more articles in the media than Investar. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for Equity Bancshares and 2 mentions for Investar. Equity Bancshares' average media sentiment score of 0.46 beat Investar's score of 0.30 indicating that Equity Bancshares is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Investar	0 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Equity Bancshares	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has more volatility and risk, ISTR or EQBK?

Investar has a beta of 0.81, meaning that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equity Bancshares has a beta of 0.73, meaning that its stock price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is ISTR or EQBK a better dividend stock?

Investar pays an annual dividend of $0.42 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Equity Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Investar pays out 20.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Equity Bancshares pays out 15.1% 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.

Is ISTR or EQBK more profitable?

Equity Bancshares has a net margin of 18.66% compared to Investar's net margin of 12.81%. Equity Bancshares' return on equity of 14.64% beat Investar's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Investar	12.81%	8.00%	0.67%
Equity Bancshares	18.66%	14.64%	1.31%

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer ISTR or EQBK?

Investar received 79 more outperform votes than Equity Bancshares when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 59.95% of users gave Investar an outperform vote while only 48.29% of users gave Equity Bancshares an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Investar	Outperform Votes 220 59.95%	Underperform Votes 147 40.05%
Equity Bancshares	Outperform Votes 141 48.29%	Underperform Votes 151 51.71%

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in ISTR or EQBK?

50.2% of Investar shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.7% of Investar shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.6% of Equity Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts recommend ISTR or EQBK?

Investar currently has a consensus target price of $20.50, suggesting a potential upside of 23.49%. Equity Bancshares has a consensus target price of $48.00, suggesting a potential upside of 33.76%. Given Equity Bancshares' higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equity Bancshares is more favorable than Investar.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Investar	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Equity Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Which has higher earnings and valuation, ISTR or EQBK?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Investar	$82.41M	1.98	$20.25M	$2.04	8.14
Equity Bancshares	$215.83M	2.91	$62.62M	$3.98	9.02

Summary

Equity Bancshares beats Investar on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.