Analyzing CNB Financial (NASDAQ:CCNE) and Orange County Bancorp (NASDAQ:OBT)

CNB Financial (NASDAQ:CCNE) and Orange County Bancorp (NASDAQ:OBT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership and dividends.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares CNB Financial and Orange County Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CNB Financial	$364.58 million	2.17	$54.58 million	$1.99	13.49
Orange County Bancorp	$128.82 million	2.97	$27.88 million	$3.02	9.49

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

Risk & Volatility

CNB Financial has a beta of 0.74, indicating that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Orange County Bancorp has a beta of 0.44, indicating that its share price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

52.4% of CNB Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.6% of Orange County Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.8% of CNB Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 9.3% of Orange County Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares CNB Financial and Orange County Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CNB Financial	11.92%	10.38%	0.95%
Orange County Bancorp	23.51%	15.98%	1.41%

Dividends

CNB Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Orange County Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. CNB Financial pays out 36.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Orange County Bancorp pays out 23.8% 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. CNB Financial has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. CNB Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for CNB Financial and Orange County Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CNB Financial	0	2	1	1	2.75
Orange County Bancorp	0	2	2	0	2.50

CNB Financial currently has a consensus target price of $27.75, indicating a potential upside of 3.33%. Orange County Bancorp has a consensus target price of $30.25, indicating a potential upside of 5.55%. Given Orange County Bancorp’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Orange County Bancorp is more favorable than CNB Financial.

About CNB Financial

CNB Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for CNB Bank that provides a range of banking products and services for individual, business, governmental, and institutional customers. The company accepts checking, savings, and time deposit accounts; and offers real estate, commercial, industrial, residential, and consumer loans, as well as various other specialized financial services. It also provides private banking; and wealth and asset management services, including the administration of trusts and estates, retirement plans, and other employee benefit plans, as well as a range of wealth management services. In addition, the company invests in debt and equity securities; sells nonproprietary annuities and other insurance products; and offers small balance unsecured loans and secured loans primarily collateralized by automobiles and equipment, as well as engages in consumer discount loan and finance business. The company was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in Clearfield, Pennsylvania.

About Orange County Bancorp

Orange County Bancorp, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides commercial and consumer banking products and services, and trust and wealth management services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, local municipal governments, and individuals. It accepts various deposits, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing demand accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also offers commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate construction loans, residential real estate loans, home equity loans, and consumer loans. In addition, it provides traditional trust and administration, asset management, financial planning, and wealth management services. The company operates full-service branches and loan production office in Orange, Westchester, Rockland, and Bronx counties in New York. Orange County Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1892 and is headquartered in Middletown, New York.