Critical Contrast: Citizens (NASDAQ:CIZN) versus First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA)
by Michael Walen · The Markets DailyCitizens (NASDAQ:CIZN – Get Free Report) and First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA – Get Free Report) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk and profitability.
Dividends
Citizens pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. First Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Citizens pays out 4.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Bank pays out 21.3% 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. Citizens has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
9.7% of Citizens shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.9% of First Bank shares are held by institutional investors. 8.9% of Citizens shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.1% of First Bank 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.
Profitability
This table compares Citizens and First Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Citizens | 7.00% | 11.28% | 0.37% |
| First Bank | 17.45% | 9.57% | 1.06% |
Risk & Volatility
Citizens has a beta of 0.04, indicating that its stock price is 96% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Bank has a beta of 0.52, indicating that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Citizens and First Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Citizens | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3.00 |
| First Bank | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2.60 |
Citizens presently has a consensus price target of $14.17, suggesting a potential upside of 44.56%. First Bank has a consensus price target of $19.67, suggesting a potential upside of 10.49%. Given Citizens’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Citizens is more favorable than First Bank.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Citizens and First Bank”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Citizens | $40.95 million | 1.36 | $5.49 million | $1.68 | 5.83 |
| First Bank | $245.83 million | 1.82 | $43.66 million | $1.69 | 10.53 |
First Bank has higher revenue and earnings than Citizens. Citizens is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Bank, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
First Bank beats Citizens on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Citizens
Citizens Holding Company operates as the bank holding company for The Citizens Bank of Philadelphia that provides various commercial and personal banking products and services. It offers demand deposits; and savings and time deposit accounts. The company also provides secured and unsecured loans; mortgage loans; single and multi-family housing, farm, residential and commercial construction, and commercial real estate loans; commercial, industrial, and agricultural production loans; and consumer loans, as well as issues letters of credit. In addition, it offers personal and corporate trust services; credit life and title insurance; and online and mobile banking services. The company was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Philadelphia, Mississippi.
About First Bank
First Bank provides various banking products and services to small to mid-sized businesses and individuals. The company accepts various deposits, including non-interest-bearing demand deposits, interest bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as commercial checking accounts. It also offers various loan products comprising commercial and industrial loans, which include line of credit, inventory, equipment, and short-term working capital financing; commercial real estate loans, such as owner-occupied, investor, construction and development, and multi-family loans; residential real estate loans comprising residential mortgages, first and second lien home equity loans, and revolving lines of credit; and consumer and other loans consists of auto, personal, traditional installment, and other loans. The company also provides electronic banking services, including Internet and mobile banking, electronic bill payment, and banking by phone; ATM and debit cards, and wire and ACH transfer services; remote deposit capture; and cash management services, as well as engages in the capital markets activities. It operates full-service branches in Cinnaminson, Delanco, Denville, Ewing, Fairfield, Flemington, Hamilton, Lawrence, Monroe, Pennington, Randolph, Somerset, and Williamstown, New Jersey; Doylestown, Trevose, Warminster, and West Chester, Paoli, Malvern, Coventry, Devon, Lionville, and Glen Mills Pennsylvania; and Palm Beach, Florida. First Bank was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Hamilton, New Jersey.