Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) vs. Bridgewater Bancshares (NASDAQ:BWB) Head-To-Head Contrast

Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) and Bridgewater Bancshares (NASDAQ:BWB) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, valuation and profitability.

Risk and Volatility

Fulton Financial has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bridgewater Bancshares has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Fulton Financial and Bridgewater Bancshares”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fulton Financial	$1.89 billion	2.20	$391.61 million	$2.09	10.45
Bridgewater Bancshares	$292.76 million	1.92	$46.09 million	$1.84	10.96

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

Profitability

This table compares Fulton Financial and Bridgewater Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fulton Financial	20.63%	12.68%	1.30%
Bridgewater Bancshares	18.38%	11.21%	0.95%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

72.0% of Fulton Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 65.8% of Bridgewater Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Fulton Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 23.1% of Bridgewater Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Fulton Financial and Bridgewater Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fulton Financial	0	4	1	0	2.20
Bridgewater Bancshares	0	0	4	0	3.00

Fulton Financial currently has a consensus price target of $24.75, suggesting a potential upside of 13.27%. Bridgewater Bancshares has a consensus price target of $23.67, suggesting a potential upside of 17.39%. Given Bridgewater Bancshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Bridgewater Bancshares is more favorable than Fulton Financial.

Summary

Fulton Financial beats Bridgewater Bancshares on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Fulton Financial

Fulton Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company that provides consumer and commercial banking products and services in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia. It accepts various checking accounts and savings deposit products, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company offers consumer loans products, including home equity loans and lines of credit, automobile loans, personal lines of credit, and checking account overdraft protection; construction and jumbo residential mortgage loans; and commercial lending products comprising commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, and construction loans, as well as equipment lease financing loans. In addition, it offers letters of credit, cash management services, and traditional deposit products; and wealth management services, including investment management, trust, brokerage, insurance, and investment advisory services. Further, the company owns trust preferred securities; and sells various life insurance products. It provides its products and services through financial center offices, as well as through a network of automated teller machines, telephone banking, mobile banking, and online banking. Fulton Financial Corporation was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

About Bridgewater Bancshares

Bridgewater Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Bridgewater Bank that provides banking products and services to commercial real estate investors, entrepreneurs, business clients, and individuals in the United States. The company provides savings and money market accounts, demand deposits, time and brokered deposits, and interest and noninterest bearing transaction, as well as certificates of deposit. It offers commercial loans to sole proprietorships, partnerships, corporations, and other business enterprises to finance working capital, capital investment, or for other business related purposes; paycheck protection program loans; construction and land development loans; 1-4 family mortgage loans; multifamily lending products; owner and non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans; and consumer and other loans. In addition, the company online, mobile, and direct banking services. Bridgewater Bancshares, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Saint Louis Park, Minnesota.