Critical Review: Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK) and Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD (OTCMKTS:GOVB)

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

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Landmark Bancorp and Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Landmark Bancorp	$89.35 million	1.90	$13.00 million	$2.84	9.86
Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD	$9.72 million	1.89	$730,000.00	$0.72	24.31

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

Risk & Volatility

Landmark Bancorp has a beta of 0.27, indicating that its share price is 73% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD has a beta of 0.55, indicating that its share price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Landmark Bancorp and Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Landmark Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD	0	0	0	0	0.00

Insider and Institutional Ownership

25.7% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 21.6% of Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD shares are held by institutional investors. 12.8% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.1% of Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Landmark Bancorp and Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Landmark Bancorp	18.32%	12.44%	1.13%
Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD	7.54%	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Landmark Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD pays an annual dividend of $0.18 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Landmark Bancorp pays out 28.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD pays out 25.0% 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. Landmark Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Landmark Bancorp beats Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About Gouverneur Bancorp Inc./MD

Gouverneur Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Gouverneur Savings and Loan Association that provides various banking products and services to individuals and businesses in New York. It accepts passbook savings, NOW, money market deposit, and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company's loan products include mortgage loans, one- to four-family residential loans, commercial real estate loans, and multi-family residential real estate loans, residential and commercial construction loans, commercial land loans, home equity loans, lines of credit, commercial loans, automobiles, motorcycles, campers, boats, and other recreational vehicles, as well as personal secured and unsecured loans. It also invests in municipal bonds, U.S. Treasury securities, U.S. Government agencies and government-sponsored obligations, and mortgage-backed securities. In addition, the company offers online, mobile, bill pay, and telephone banking; electronic or paper statements; and ATM, debit cards, direct deposits, mobile remote deposit capture, automatic payments and transfers, bank checks, wire transfers, and safe deposit box services. It serves primarily the St. Lawrence County, and Jefferson and Lewis counties in New York State. The company was founded in 1892 and is headquartered in Gouverneur, New York.