Head-To-Head Analysis: Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) and CPB (NYSE:CPF)

CPB (NYSE:CPF) and Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for CPB and Sierra Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CPB	0	1	2	0	2.67
Sierra Bancorp	0	2	2	0	2.50

CPB presently has a consensus price target of $34.50, indicating a potential upside of 16.11%. Sierra Bancorp has a consensus price target of $34.50, indicating a potential upside of 15.00%. Given CPB’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe CPB is more favorable than Sierra Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

CPB has a beta of 1.06, meaning that its share price is 6% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sierra Bancorp has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its share price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares CPB and Sierra Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CPB	$270.52 million	2.95	$53.41 million	$2.43	12.23
Sierra Bancorp	$141.18 million	2.83	$40.56 million	$2.87	10.45

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

Dividends

CPB pays an annual dividend of $1.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Sierra Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. CPB pays out 46.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Sierra Bancorp pays out 34.8% 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. CPB has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years and Sierra Bancorp has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares CPB and Sierra Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CPB	18.66%	13.28%	1.01%
Sierra Bancorp	19.70%	11.21%	1.09%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

88.4% of CPB shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 55.4% of Sierra Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of CPB shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 11.9% of Sierra Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

CPB beats Sierra Bancorp on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CPB

Central Pacific Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Central Pacific Bank that provides a range of commercial banking products and services to businesses, professionals, and individuals in the United States. It offers various deposit products and services, including checking, savings and time deposits, cash management and digital banking, trust, and retail brokerage services, as well as money market accounts and certificates of deposit. The company also provides various lending activities, such as commercial, commercial and residential mortgage, home equity, and consumer loans; and other products and services comprising debit cards, internet and mobile banking, cash management services, full-service ATMs, safe deposit boxes, international banking services, night depository facilities, foreign exchange, and wire transfers. In addition, it offers wealth management products and services that include non-deposit investment products, annuities, insurance, investment management, asset custody and general consultation, and planning services. The company was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Bank of the Sierra that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in California. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market demand accounts, time deposits, retirement accounts, and sweep accounts. The company's loan products include agricultural, commercial, consumer, real estate, construction, and mortgage loans. It also offers automated teller machines; electronic point-of-sale payment alternatives; online and automated telephone banking services; and remote deposit capture and automated payroll services for business customers. Sierra Bancorp was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Porterville, California.