Contrasting Capital City Bank Group (NASDAQ:CCBG) and M&F Bancorp (OTCMKTS:MFBP)

M&F Bancorp (OTCMKTS:MFBP) and Capital City Bank Group (NASDAQ:CCBG) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, valuation and dividends.

Dividends

M&F Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Capital City Bank Group pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. M&F Bancorp pays out 12.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Capital City Bank Group pays out 28.9% 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. Capital City Bank Group has raised its dividend for 11 consecutive years. Capital City Bank Group is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares M&F Bancorp and Capital City Bank Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
M&F Bancorp	$29.33 million	1.28	$4.77 million	$1.99	9.77
Capital City Bank Group	$286.74 million	2.58	$61.56 million	$3.60	12.03

Capital City Bank Group has higher revenue and earnings than M&F Bancorp. M&F Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Capital City Bank Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares M&F Bancorp and Capital City Bank Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
M&F Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A
Capital City Bank Group	21.47%	11.69%	1.40%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

44.6% of Capital City Bank Group shares are held by institutional investors. 2.9% of M&F Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 19.6% of Capital City Bank Group shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for M&F Bancorp and Capital City Bank Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
M&F Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00
Capital City Bank Group	0	2	1	0	2.33

Capital City Bank Group has a consensus price target of $45.00, indicating a potential upside of 3.93%. Given Capital City Bank Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Capital City Bank Group is more favorable than M&F Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

M&F Bancorp has a beta of -0.57, indicating that its share price is 157% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Capital City Bank Group has a beta of 0.34, indicating that its share price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Capital City Bank Group beats M&F Bancorp on 16 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About M&F Bancorp

M&F Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for the Mechanics and Farmers Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking products and services in North Carolina. It offers deposit products, including demand deposits; checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company provides loans for commercial and residential real estate, and construction; and consumer and other loans; as well as ATM services. M&F Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.

About Capital City Bank Group

Capital City Bank Group, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for Capital City Bank that provides a range of banking- related services to individual and corporate clients. The company offers financing for commercial business properties, equipment, inventories, and accounts receivable, as well as commercial leasing and letters of credit; treasury management services; and merchant credit card transaction processing services. It also provides commercial and residential real estate lending products, as well as fixed and adjustable-rate residential mortgage loans; personal, automobile, boat/RV, and home equity loans; and credit card programs. In addition, the company offers institutional banking services, including customized checking and savings accounts, cash management systems, tax-exempt loans, lines of credit, and term loans to meet the needs of state and local governments, public schools and colleges, charities, membership, and not-for-profit associations. Further, it provides consumer banking services comprising checking accounts, savings programs, interactive/automated teller machines, debit/credit cards, night deposit services, safe deposit facilities, and online and mobile banking services. Additionally, the company provides asset management for individuals through agency, personal trust, IRA, and personal investment management accounts; and various retail securities products, such as the U.S. government bonds, tax-free municipal bonds, stocks, mutual funds, unit investment trusts, annuities, life insurance, and long-term health care, as well as business, estate, financial, insurance and business planning, tax planning, and asset protection advisory services. Capital City Bank Group, Inc. was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida.