Analyzing SR Bancorp (NASDAQ:SRBK) & Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC)

Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC) and SR Bancorp (NASDAQ:SRBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Citizens & Northern and SR Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Citizens & Northern	16.81%	9.75%	1.06%
SR Bancorp	6.28%	1.42%	0.26%

Volatility and Risk

Citizens & Northern has a beta of 0.56, indicating that its stock price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SR Bancorp has a beta of 0.54, indicating that its stock price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

30.8% of Citizens & Northern shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 24.7% of SR Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 4.5% of Citizens & Northern shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 7.8% of SR Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Citizens & Northern and SR Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Citizens & Northern	$157.29 million	2.29	$25.96 million	$1.76	11.50
SR Bancorp	$48.54 million	2.77	$5.14 million	$0.37	42.68

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Citizens & Northern and SR Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Citizens & Northern	0	4	0	0	2.00
SR Bancorp	0	2	0	0	2.00

Citizens & Northern currently has a consensus target price of $22.00, indicating a potential upside of 8.70%. SR Bancorp has a consensus target price of $16.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.33%. Given Citizens & Northern’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Citizens & Northern is more favorable than SR Bancorp.

Dividends

Citizens & Northern pays an annual dividend of $1.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.5%. SR Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Citizens & Northern pays out 63.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. SR Bancorp pays out 54.1% 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.

Summary

Citizens & Northern beats SR Bancorp on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Citizens & Northern

Citizens & Northern Corp. is a holding company, which engages in community banking. It provides a full range of banking and mortgage services to individual and corporate customers in North Central Pennsylvania and Southern New York State. The firm’s lending products include mortgage loans, commercial loans, and consumer loans. Its deposit products include various types of checking accounts, passbook and statement savings, money market accounts, interest checking accounts, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Wellsboro, PA.

About SR Bancorp

SR Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Somerset Regal Bank that provides customary retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, and local municipalities in the communities of Somerset, Middlesex, Hunterdon, and Essex counties in New Jersey. It offers deposit instruments, including noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides loans comprising one- to four family-residential mortgage loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, unsecured personal loans, and rehabilitation loans; and bill payment services. In addition, it is involved in the investment activities. The company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Bound Brook, New Jersey.