Standard Chartered (OTC:SCBFF) vs. Heartland BancCorp (OTCMKTS:HLAN) Head-To-Head Contrast

Heartland BancCorp (OTCMKTS:HLAN) and Standard Chartered (OTC:SCBFF) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Risk and Volatility

Heartland BancCorp has a beta of 0.42, suggesting that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Standard Chartered has a beta of 0.67, suggesting that its share price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

7.5% of Heartland BancCorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 22.7% of Heartland BancCorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Heartland BancCorp and Standard Chartered”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Heartland BancCorp	$104.83 million	3.11	$19.52 million	$9.76	16.39
Standard Chartered	$37.48 billion	0.93	$3.47 billion	$1.47	9.61

Standard Chartered has higher revenue and earnings than Heartland BancCorp. Standard Chartered is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heartland BancCorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Heartland BancCorp and Standard Chartered’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Heartland BancCorp	17.89%	N/A	N/A
Standard Chartered	10.92%	9.49%	0.58%

Dividends

Heartland BancCorp pays an annual dividend of $3.03 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Standard Chartered pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Heartland BancCorp pays out 31.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Standard Chartered pays out 38.1% 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Heartland BancCorp and Standard Chartered, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Heartland BancCorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
Standard Chartered	0	0	0	1	4.00

Heartland BancCorp currently has a consensus target price of $145.00, suggesting a potential downside of 9.38%. Given Heartland BancCorp’s higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Heartland BancCorp is more favorable than Standard Chartered.

About Heartland BancCorp

Heartland BancCorp operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank that provides various banking and financial services to individual and corporate customers. The company offers personal and business checking and savings accounts. It also provides various lending solutions comprising agricultural loans, commercial and business lending, home and personal loans, and title services. In addition, the company offers online banking, treasury management, credit and debit card, and mobile wallet services. Further, it provides education planning, insurance, wealth management, and retirement planning services. Heartland BancCorp was founded in 1911 and is based in Whitehall, Ohio.

About Standard Chartered

Standard Chartered PLC, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas. The company operates in three segments: Corporate, Commercial & Institutional Banking; Consumer, Private & Business Banking; and Ventures. It offers retail products, such as deposits, mortgages, credit cards, and personal loans; wealth management products and services that include investments, portfolio management, insurance, and wealth advice; and transaction banking services, such as cash management, working capital, and trade financing products. The company provides financial markets products and services that comprise project and export financing; debt capital markets and leveraged financing; financing and securities services; sales and structuring; macro, commodities, and credit trading; and market research services. In addition, it offers digital banking solutions. It serves financial institutions, governments, banks, investors, corporations, small to medium-sized businesses, and individuals. Standard Chartered PLC was founded in 1853 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.