Which Is a Better Investment, TowneBank or United Bankshares, Inc. Stock?

By AAII Staff
September 08, 2026
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Sifting through countless of stocks in the Banks industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in TowneBank, United Bankshares or Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc.

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals in the United States. It operates through four segments: Banking, Mortgage, Resort Vacation Management, and Insurance. The company provides treasury solutions and deposit products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, and various types of time deposit services, such as daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit; transaction accounts and certificates of deposit; and retirement account services comprising individual retirement accounts. It also offers safe deposit boxes, treasury management services, direct deposit of payroll and social security checks, and automatic drafts for various accounts; secured and unsecured loans for financing automobiles, home improvements, education, and personal investments; and secured and unsecured loans for working capital, business expansion, equipment and machinery purchases, fixed- and floating-rate mortgage loans, and larger commercial loans, as well as real estate acquisition, development, and construction loans. In addition, the company can act as a qualified intermediary assisting investors; provides other financial services, such as financial, retirement, and estate planning; and offers assistance on a various investment option, including alternative investments, annuities, margin accounts, convertible bonds, and pension and profit-sharing plans. Further, it provides residential mortgage loans; residential resort property management; property, casualty, life, and health insurance products for businesses, individuals, and community organizations; and commercial and consumer insurance products and financial services, as well as individual and group life and health insurance. Additionally, the company offers online banking, mobile banking, and on-call banking. TowneBank was incorporated in 1998 and is based in Portsmouth, Virginia.

United Bankshares, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides commercial and retail banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts checking, savings, and time and money market accounts; individual retirement accounts; and demand deposits, statement and special savings, and NOW accounts. Its loan products include commercial loans and leases to small to mid-size industrial and commercial companies, as well as automobile dealers, service, retail and wholesale merchants; construction and real estate loans, such as commercial and residential mortgages, and loans secured by owner-occupied real estate; personal, automobiles, boats, recreational vehicles, credit card receivables, commercial, and floor plan loans; and home equity loans. In addition, the company provides credit cards; trust, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, and other banking products and services; investment and security services; buying and selling federal fund services; automated teller machine services; and internet and automated telephone banking services. Further, it offers community banking services, such as asset management, real property title insurance, financial planning, mortgage banking, and brokerage services, as well as custody of assets, investment management, escrow services, and related fiduciary activities. The company was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia.

Latest Banks and TowneBank, United Bankshares, Inc. Stock News

As of September 4, 2026, TowneBank had a $3.4 billion market capitalization, compared to the Banks median of $767.9 million. TowneBank’s stock is NA in 2026, NA in the previous five trading days and up 2.8% in the past year.

Currently, TowneBank’s price-earnings ratio is 10.0. TowneBank’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.1 billion with a 28.6% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 117.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.140 per share for the current fiscal year. TowneBank currently has a 3.0% dividend yield.

Currently, United Bankshares, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 13.1. United Bankshares, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.3 billion with a 41.2% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 6.3%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.683 per share for the current fiscal year. United Bankshares, Inc. currently has a 3.2% dividend yield.

How We Compare TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. Stock Value Grades

Company Ticker Value
TowneBank TOWN C
United Bankshares, Inc. UBSI B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

TowneBank has a Value Score of 54, which is Average. United Bankshares, Inc. has a Value Score of 64, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: United Bankshares, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Value Grade breakdown above, United Bankshares, Inc. is considered to have better value than TowneBank. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, United Bankshares, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. Growth Grades

Company Ticker Growth
TowneBank TOWN B
United Bankshares, Inc. UBSI C

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

TowneBank has a Growth Score of 77, which is Strong. United Bankshares, Inc. has a Growth Score of 43, which is Average.

The Growth Grade Winner: TowneBank

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, TowneBank has a more attractive growth grade than United Bankshares, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, TowneBank could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company Ticker Quality
TowneBank TOWN F
United Bankshares, Inc. UBSI D

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

TowneBank has a Quality Score of 3, which is Very Weak. United Bankshares, Inc. has a Quality Score of 32, which is Weak.

The Quality Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither TowneBank, United Bankshares or Inc. has a high enough Quality Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if TowneBank, United Bankshares or Inc. is the better investment when it comes to quality.

Don’t Forget Your Free Special Report on How A+ Grades Can Help You Make Investment Decisions

Other TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. Grades

In addition to Value, Growth and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Estimate Revisions.

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Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, TowneBank, United Bankshares or Inc. Stock?

Overall, TowneBank stock has a Value Score of 54, Growth Score of 77 and Quality Score of 3.

United Bankshares, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 64, Growth Score of 43 and Quality Score of 32.

Comparing TowneBank, United Bankshares and Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

Learn More About A+ Investor

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.



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