First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) versus Fvcbankcorp (NASDAQ:FVCB) Critical Analysis

First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) and Fvcbankcorp (NASDAQ:FVCB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, dividends, earnings and risk.

Volatility and Risk

First Community Bancshares has a beta of 0.48, suggesting that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fvcbankcorp has a beta of 0.36, suggesting that its stock price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for First Community Bancshares and Fvcbankcorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Community Bancshares	0	0	1	0	3.00
Fvcbankcorp	0	1	2	0	2.67

Fvcbankcorp has a consensus price target of $19.00, indicating a potential upside of 14.25%. Given Fvcbankcorp’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Fvcbankcorp is more favorable than First Community Bancshares.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

35.0% of First Community Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 43.6% of Fvcbankcorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of First Community Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.2% of Fvcbankcorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

First Community Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Fvcbankcorp pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. First Community Bancshares pays out 46.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fvcbankcorp pays out 21.9% 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. First Community Bancshares has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years. First Community Bancshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Community Bancshares and Fvcbankcorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Community Bancshares	$185.42 million	4.42	$48.79 million	$2.65	16.38
Fvcbankcorp	$122.03 million	2.45	$22.06 million	$1.28	12.99

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

Profitability

This table compares First Community Bancshares and Fvcbankcorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Community Bancshares	25.89%	10.44%	1.60%
Fvcbankcorp	18.85%	9.22%	1.01%

Summary

First Community Bancshares beats Fvcbankcorp on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Community Bancshares

First Community Bankshares, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for First Community Bank that provides various banking products and services. It offers demand deposit accounts, savings and money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement plans; and commercial, consumer real estate, and consumer and other loans. The company also provides trust management, estate administration, and investment advisory services; and investment management services. It serves individuals and businesses across various industries, such as education, government, and health services; coal mining and gas extraction; retail trade; construction; manufacturing; tourism; and transportation. The company operates through branches in West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Community Bankshares, Inc. was founded in 1874 and is headquartered in Bluefield, Virginia.

About Fvcbankcorp

FVCBankcorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for FVCbank that provides various banking products and services in Virginia. It offers deposit products, including interest and noninterest-bearing transaction accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides commercial real estate loans; commercial construction loans; commercial loans for various business purposes, such as for working capital, equipment purchases, lines of credit, and government contract financing; small business administration loans; asset-based loans and accounts receivable financing; home equity loans; and consumer loans. In addition, it offers business and consumer credit cards; merchant services; business insurance products; and online banking, remote deposit, and mobile banking services. The company serves commercial businesses, nonprofit organizations, professional service entities, and their respective owners and employees located in the greater Washington, D.C., and Baltimore metropolitan areas. It operates branch offices in Arlington, Virginia; the independent city of Manassas, Virginia; Reston, Fairfax County, Virginia; Springfield, Fairfax County in Virginia; and Montgomery County and Baltimore in Maryland, and Washington, D.C. FVCBankcorp, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia.