Contrasting Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) & Renasant (NYSE:RNST)

Renasant (NYSE:RNST) and Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) are both financial services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

Renasant pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Live Oak Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Renasant pays out 46.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Live Oak Bancshares pays out 8.1% 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.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Renasant and Live Oak Bancshares, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Renasant	0	1	0	1	3.00
Live Oak Bancshares	0	2	0	1	2.67

Volatility & Risk

Renasant has a beta of 0.98, suggesting that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Live Oak Bancshares has a beta of 1.98, suggesting that its share price is 98% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Renasant and Live Oak Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Renasant	11.26%	6.99%	1.01%
Live Oak Bancshares	6.94%	6.73%	0.52%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

77.3% of Renasant shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.0% of Live Oak Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 2.8% of Renasant shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 23.4% of Live Oak Bancshares shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Renasant and Live Oak Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Renasant	$874.43 million	3.63	$195.46 million	$1.99	16.78
Live Oak Bancshares	$533.05 million	2.54	$77.47 million	$1.49	19.89

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

Summary

Renasant beats Live Oak Bancshares on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Renasant

Renasant Corporation operates as a bank holding company for Renasant Bank that provides a range of financial, wealth management, fiduciary, and insurance services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through three segments: Community Banks, Insurance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banks segment offers checking and savings accounts, business and personal loans, asset-based lending, and equipment leasing services, as well as safe deposit and night depository facilities. It also provides commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; equipment financing and leasing; real estate–1-4 family mortgage; real estate–commercial mortgage; real estate–construction loans for the construction of single family residential properties, multi-family properties, and commercial projects; installment loans to individuals; and interim construction loans, as well as automated teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, call center, and treasury management services. The Insurance segment provides insurance agency services, such as commercial and personal insurance products through insurance carriers. The Wealth Management segment offers a range of wealth management and fiduciary services, including administration and management of trust accounts, such as personal and corporate benefit accounts, and custodial accounts, as well as accounting and money management for trust accounts; annuities, mutual funds, and other investment services through a third party broker-dealer; and qualified retirement plans, IRAs, employee benefit plans, personal trusts, and estates. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated a network of 189 banking, lending, and mortgage offices located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee; 150 full-service branches and 11 limited-service branches; 173 ATMs; and 38 interactive teller machines. Renasant Corporation was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi.

About Live Oak Bancshares

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Live Oak Banking Company that provides various commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, and professionals in North Carolina, the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing demand, as well as interest-bearing checking, money market, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial and industrial loans; construction and development loans; owner occupied and non-owner occupied collateral commercial real estate loans; and commercial land loans. In addition, the company provides settlement, accounting, and securitization services for government guaranteed loans; wealth and investment management services to high-net-worth individuals and families; investment advisory services to a series of funds focused on providing venture capital to new and emerging financial technology companies; and an on-site restaurant location to company employees and business visitors. Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina.