Comparing Patriot National Bancorp (NASDAQ:PNBK) & Banc of California (NYSE:BANC)

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) and Patriot National Bancorp (NASDAQ:PNBK) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

Banc of California has a beta of 1.17, meaning that its share price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Patriot National Bancorp has a beta of 0.41, meaning that its share price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Banc of California and Patriot National Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Banc of California	-29.10%	2.25%	0.19%
Patriot National Bancorp	-5.33%	-7.72%	-0.31%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Banc of California and Patriot National Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Banc of California	0	5	1	0	2.17
Patriot National Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A

Banc of California presently has a consensus price target of $16.64, indicating a potential upside of 12.15%. Given Banc of California’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Banc of California is more favorable than Patriot National Bancorp.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Banc of California and Patriot National Bancorp’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Banc of California	$1.97 billion	1.19	-$1.90 billion	($3.33)	-4.46
Patriot National Bancorp	$64.96 million	0.20	-$4.18 million	($0.87)	-3.79

Patriot National Bancorp has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Banc of California. Banc of California is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Patriot National Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

86.9% of Banc of California shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.3% of Patriot National Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 2.8% of Banc of California shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.4% of Patriot National Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Banc of California beats Patriot National Bancorp on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Banc of California

Banc of California, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Banc of California that provides various banking products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, demand, and time deposits; certificates of deposit; retirement accounts; and safe deposit boxes. It also provides real estate loans to professional developers and real estate investors for the acquisition, construction, refinancing, renovation, and on-going operation of commercial real estate properties; commercial real estate mortgage, residential real estate mortgage, and real estate construction and land loans; commercial loans and leases, such as equipment finance, other asset-based, venture capital, secured business, warehouse, and other lending services; small business administration loans; and consumer loans comprising personal, auto, and other loans, as well as home equity and revolving lines of credit. In addition, the company offers international banking, multi-state deposit, and asset and investment management services, as well as cash and treasury management services; and online, mobile, remote deposit, and telephone banking services. It serves small and middle-market businesses, venture capital firms, non-profit organizations, business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals, and high-net worth individuals. Banc of California, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

About Patriot National Bancorp

Patriot National Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Patriot Bank, N.A. that provides community banking services to individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, and professionals. The company accepts consumer and commercial deposit accounts, such as checking, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal, money market, time certificates of deposit, savings, prepaid deposit, on-line national money market, individual retirement accounts, and health savings accounts, as well as certificate of deposit account registry service. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate, commercial business, small business administration, construction, purchased residential real estate, and various consumer loans. The company also offers automated clearing house transfers, lockbox, internet banking, bill payment, remote deposit capture, debit card, money order, traveler's check, and automatic teller machine services. Patriot National Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.