Head to Head Analysis: Hanover Bancorp (NASDAQ:HNVR) versus Camden National (NASDAQ:CAC)

Hanover Bancorp (NASDAQ:HNVR) and Camden National (NASDAQ:CAC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends and earnings.

Dividends

Hanover Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Camden National pays an annual dividend of $1.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Hanover Bancorp pays out 26.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Camden National pays out 47.9% 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.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Hanover Bancorp and Camden National”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hanover Bancorp	$148.36 million	1.10	$12.35 million	$1.52	14.98
Camden National	$294.10 million	2.48	$53.00 million	$3.51	12.26

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

Volatility & Risk

Hanover Bancorp has a beta of 0.04, suggesting that its share price is 96% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Camden National has a beta of 0.65, suggesting that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Hanover Bancorp and Camden National’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hanover Bancorp	7.82%	7.20%	0.60%
Camden National	16.24%	10.76%	1.01%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Hanover Bancorp and Camden National, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hanover Bancorp	0	3	2	0	2.40
Camden National	0	4	2	0	2.33

Hanover Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $24.50, suggesting a potential upside of 7.60%. Camden National has a consensus price target of $46.75, suggesting a potential upside of 8.65%. Given Camden National’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Camden National is more favorable than Hanover Bancorp.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

15.0% of Hanover Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.4% of Camden National shares are held by institutional investors. 24.8% of Hanover Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of Camden National shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Camden National beats Hanover Bancorp on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hanover Bancorp

Hanover Bancorp, Inc., a bank holding company for Hanover Community Bank, provides personal and business lending and deposit services to businesses, municipalities, and individuals in the New York metro area. The company offers checking, credit cards, debit cards, money market, savings, government and municipal banking, and professional services, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposit and individual retirement accounts. It also provides business loans, commercial real estate financing, small business administration, lending directory services, and residential mortgage. In addition, the company offers cash management, online and mobile banking, merchant services, and digital solutions. Its banking offices are located in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Kings, New York Counties, New York, Monmouth County, Freehold, and New Jersey. The company was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Mineola, New York.

About Camden National

Camden National Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Camden National Bank that provides various commercial and consumer banking products and services for consumer, institutional, municipal, non-profit, and commercial customers in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. The company accepts checking, savings, time, and brokered deposits, as well as deposits with the certificate of deposit account registry system. Its loan products include non-owner-occupied commercial estate loans, owner-occupied commercial real estate loans, unsecured fully-guaranteed commercial loans backed by the small business administration, loans secured by one-to four-family properties, and consumer and home equity loans. The company also provides brokerage and insurance services through its financial offerings consisting of college, retirement, estate planning, mutual funds, strategic asset management accounts, and variable and fixed annuities. Further, it offers a range of fiduciary and asset management, wealth management, investment management, financial planning, and trustee services. Camden National Corporation was founded in 1875 and is headquartered in Camden, Maine.