Contrasting First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) & Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR)

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) and First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

55.4% of Sierra Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.1% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 11.6% of Sierra Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned 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.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Sierra Bancorp and First Northwest Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sierra Bancorp	$203.87 million	2.17	$40.56 million	$2.87	11.57
First Northwest Bancorp	$124.95 million	0.81	-$6.61 million	$0.36	29.78

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

Risk and Volatility

Sierra Bancorp has a beta of 0.81, meaning that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Northwest Bancorp has a beta of 0.6, meaning that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sierra Bancorp	19.70%	11.17%	1.08%
First Northwest Bancorp	2.67%	2.10%	0.15%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Sierra Bancorp and First Northwest Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sierra Bancorp	0	2	2	0	2.50
First Northwest Bancorp	1	2	1	0	2.00

Sierra Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $34.50, suggesting a potential upside of 3.88%. First Northwest Bancorp has a consensus price target of $13.50, suggesting a potential upside of 25.93%. Given First Northwest Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Northwest Bancorp is more favorable than Sierra Bancorp.

Summary

Sierra Bancorp beats First Northwest Bancorp on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About First Northwest Bancorp

First Northwest Bancorp operates as a bank holding company for First Fed Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services to individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations in western Washington, the United States. The company accepts various deposit instruments, including checking, money market deposit, savings, and transaction accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also originates one- to four-family mortgage loans, commercial and multi-family real estate loans, construction and land loans, and commercial business loans, as well as consumer loans primarily consisting of automobile loans, and home-equity loans and lines of credit. First Northwest Bancorp operates branch offices in Clallam, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, and Whatcom Counties, Washington. First Northwest Bancorp was founded in 1923 and is based in Port Angeles, Washington.