Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK) and OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Critical Contrast

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) and Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares OceanFirst Financial and Landmark Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
OceanFirst Financial	12.89%	5.22%	0.66%
Landmark Bancorp	17.55%	12.09%	1.08%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.0% of OceanFirst Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.7% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 5.1% of OceanFirst Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 12.8% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

OceanFirst Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. Landmark Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. OceanFirst Financial pays out 56.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Landmark Bancorp pays out 29.8% 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. Landmark Bancorp has increased its dividend for 6 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for OceanFirst Financial and Landmark Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
OceanFirst Financial	0	4	1	1	2.50
Landmark Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

OceanFirst Financial currently has a consensus price target of $20.6667, indicating a potential upside of 20.16%. Given OceanFirst Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe OceanFirst Financial is more favorable than Landmark Bancorp.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares OceanFirst Financial and Landmark Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
OceanFirst Financial	$692.36 million	1.43	$100.07 million	$1.41	12.20
Landmark Bancorp	$89.35 million	1.67	$13.00 million	$2.82	9.15

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

Volatility and Risk

OceanFirst Financial has a beta of 1.04, suggesting that its stock price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Landmark Bancorp has a beta of 0.27, suggesting that its stock price is 73% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

OceanFirst Financial beats Landmark Bancorp on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About OceanFirst Financial

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers. The company also offers commercial real estate, multi-family, land loans, construction, and commercial and industrial loans; fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgage loans that are secured by one-to-four family residences; and consumer loans, such as home equity loans and lines of credit, student loans, overdraft line of credit, loans on savings accounts, and other consumer loans. In addition, it invests in mortgage-backed securities, securities issued by the U.S. Government and agencies, corporate securities, and other investments. Further, the company offers bankcard, trust and asset management services; and bank owned life insurance products. The company was founded in 1902 and is based in Red Bank, New Jersey.

About Landmark Bancorp

Landmark Bancorp, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for Landmark National Bank that provides various financial and banking services to its local communities. It offers non-interest bearing demand, money market, checking, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides one-to-four family residential real estate, construction and land, commercial real estate, commercial, paycheck protection program, municipal, and agriculture loans; and consumer and other loans, such as automobile, boat, and home improvement and home equity loans, as well as insurance, and mobile and online banking services. In addition, the company invests in certain investment and mortgage-related securities. It operates in the eastern, central, southeast, and southwest Kansas. The company was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Manhattan, Kansas.