Financial Comparison: WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) and Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE)

Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) and WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Carter Bankshares and WSFS Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Carter Bankshares	6.11%	4.49%	0.35%
WSFS Financial	20.73%	11.94%	1.39%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Carter Bankshares and WSFS Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Carter Bankshares	0	0	0	0	N/A
WSFS Financial	0	1	2	0	2.67

WSFS Financial has a consensus price target of $43.67, indicating a potential downside of 4.68%. Given WSFS Financial’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe WSFS Financial is more favorable than Carter Bankshares.

Risk and Volatility

Carter Bankshares has a beta of 0.94, suggesting that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, WSFS Financial has a beta of 1.02, suggesting that its share price is 2% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

41.5% of Carter Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 88.5% of WSFS Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 2.2% of Carter Bankshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of WSFS Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Carter Bankshares and WSFS Financial’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Carter Bankshares	$214.70 million	1.41	$23.19 million	$0.57	23.00
WSFS Financial	$1.02 billion	2.70	$269.16 million	$4.48	10.23

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

Summary

WSFS Financial beats Carter Bankshares on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Carter Bankshares

Carter Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Carter Bank & Trust that provides various banking products and services in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, retirement, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposits. The company also offers commercial loans comprising secured and unsecured loans; consumer loans, such as secured and unsecured loans for financing automobiles, home improvements, education, overdraft protection, and personal investments, as well as residential mortgages; real estate construction, acquisition, commercial, and industrial loans; home equity lines of credit; and credit cards, as well as originates and holds fixed and variable rate mortgage loans. In addition, it provides other banking services that include safe deposit boxes, direct deposit of payroll, and social security checks; online banking products, including online and mobile banking, online account opening, bill pay, e-statement, mobile deposit, digital wallet, and ATM services; title insurance and other financial institution-related products and services; and treasury and corporate cash management services. Carter Bankshares, Inc. was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Martinsville, Virginia.

About WSFS Financial

WSFS Financial Corporation operates as the savings and loan holding company for the Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB that provides various banking services in the United States. It operates through three segments: WSFS Bank, Cash Connect, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand deposits, interest-bearing demand deposits, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as accepts jumbo certificates of deposit from individuals, businesses, and municipalities. The company also provides a range of loans, which comprise fixed and adjustable rate residential loans; commercial mortgage and commercial loans; commercial construction loans; commercial loans for working capital, financing equipment and real estate acquisitions, business expansion and other business purposes; and consumer credit products, such as home equity loans, home equity lines of credit, automobile loans, unsecured lines of credit, and other secured and unsecured personal installment loans. In addition, it offers insurance products; planning and advisory services, investment management, trust services, and credit and deposit products to individual, corporate and institutional clients; retail securities and insurance brokerage services; mortgage and title services; residential mortgage and refinancing solutions; and leases small equipment and fixed assets, as well as provides financial planning, customized investment strategies, brokerage products, fiduciary, and wealth management services. Further, the company provides ATM vault cash, smart safe, and other cash logistics services; and online reporting and ATM cash management, predictive cash ordering and reconcilement services, armored carrier management, loss protection, and deposit safe cash logistics services, as well as trustee, agency, bankruptcy administration, custodial and commercial domicile services. The company was founded in 1832 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.