Critical Comparison: Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) vs. California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL)

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) and California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania and California BanCorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania	$339.62 million	3.43	$90.76 million	$3.46	12.22
California BanCorp	$180.21 million	3.94	$63.06 million	$1.84	11.99

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania has higher revenue and earnings than California BanCorp. California BanCorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania and California BanCorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania	18.86%	10.41%	1.18%
California BanCorp	26.01%	10.44%	1.49%

Volatility & Risk

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania has a beta of 0.67, suggesting that its share price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, California BanCorp has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. California BanCorp pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania pays out 26.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. California BanCorp pays out 26.1% 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. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania and California BanCorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania	0	3	0	1	2.50
California BanCorp	0	1	5	0	2.83

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania presently has a consensus price target of $40.50, suggesting a potential downside of 4.21%. California BanCorp has a consensus price target of $24.50, suggesting a potential upside of 11.01%. Given California BanCorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe California BanCorp is more favorable than Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

75.1% of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 55.4% of California BanCorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.1% of California BanCorp shares are owned by company 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

California BanCorp beats Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania

Univest Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Univest Bank and Trust Co. that provides banking products and services primarily in the United States. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance. The Banking segment offers a range of banking services, such as deposit taking, loan origination and servicing, mortgage banking, other general banking, and equipment lease financing services for individuals, businesses, municipalities, and nonprofit organizations. Its Wealth Management segment provides investment advisory, financial planning, and trust and brokerage services for private families and individuals, municipal pension plans, retirement plans, and trusts and guardianships. The Insurance segment offers commercial property and casualty insurance, employee benefits solutions, personal insurance lines, and human resources consulting services. The company was formerly known as Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania and changed its name to Univest Financial Corporation in January 2019. The company was founded in 1876 and is headquartered in Souderton, Pennsylvania.

About California BanCorp

Southern California Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Southern California, N.A. that provides various financial products to individuals, professionals, and small-to medium-sized businesses. The company offers checking, personal and business savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also provides home equity lines of credit, business loans and lines of credit, commercial real estate and construction loans, small business administration loans, letters of credit, and personal and business credit cards. In addition, the company provides cash vault, sweep accounts, and remote deposit capture services; online and mobile banking services; courier service; lockbox services; and merchant services. It operates branches in San Diego, Orange, Ventura, Los Angeles, and Riverside counties, as well as the Inland Empire. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.