Equity Bancshares (EQBK) Competitors

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) and Park National (NYSE:PRK) are both banking companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, media sentiment, risk, valuation, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Is EQBK or PRK a better dividend stock?

Equity Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Park National pays an annual dividend of $4.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Equity Bancshares pays out 14.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Park National pays out 41.6% 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. Park National has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years. Park National is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is EQBK or PRK more profitable?

Park National has a net margin of 23.46% compared to Equity Bancshares' net margin of 19.99%. Park National's return on equity of 12.31% beat Equity Bancshares' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Equity Bancshares	19.99%	12.17%	1.33%
Park National	23.46%	12.31%	1.50%

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of EQBK or PRK?

71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.7% of Park National shares are held by institutional investors. 6.6% of Equity Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Park National shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, EQBK or PRK?

Park National has higher revenue and earnings than Equity Bancshares. Equity Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Park National, 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
Equity Bancshares	$335.67M	2.26	$62.62M	$4.03	9.81
Park National	$543.45M	4.91	$151.42M	$10.29	16.13

Does the media refer more to EQBK or PRK?

In the previous week, Park National had 48 more articles in the media than Equity Bancshares. MarketBeat recorded 48 mentions for Park National and 0 mentions for Equity Bancshares. Equity Bancshares' average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat Park National's score of -0.02 indicating that Equity Bancshares is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Equity Bancshares	Neutral
Park National	Neutral

Do analysts recommend EQBK or PRK?

Park National has a consensus price target of $177.75, indicating a potential upside of 7.09%. Given Park National's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Park National is more favorable than Equity Bancshares.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Equity Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00
Park National	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Which has more risk & volatility, EQBK or PRK?

Equity Bancshares has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Park National has a beta of 0.76, suggesting that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Park National beats Equity Bancshares on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.