Analyzing Central Plains Bancshares (NASDAQ:CPBI) & Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP)

Central Plains Bancshares (NASDAQ:CPBI) and Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

Central Plains Bancshares has a beta of 0.16, indicating that its stock price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Independent Bank has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Central Plains Bancshares and Independent Bank, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Central Plains Bancshares	0	1	0	0	2.00
Independent Bank	0	3	1	0	2.25

Independent Bank has a consensus price target of $36.00, indicating a potential upside of 3.27%. Given Independent Bank’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Independent Bank is more favorable than Central Plains Bancshares.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

24.3% of Central Plains Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.4% of Independent Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.6% of Central Plains Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.7% of Independent Bank shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Central Plains Bancshares and Independent Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Central Plains Bancshares	12.78%	4.39%	0.72%
Independent Bank	21.25%	14.54%	1.27%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Central Plains Bancshares and Independent Bank”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Central Plains Bancshares	$27.31 million	2.54	$3.65 million	$0.97	16.96
Independent Bank	$323.14 million	2.23	$66.79 million	$3.26	10.69

Independent Bank has higher revenue and earnings than Central Plains Bancshares. Independent Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Central Plains Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Independent Bank beats Central Plains Bancshares on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Central Plains Bancshares

Central Plains Bancshares, Inc. focuses on providing various banking products and services to retail customers, and small and medium-sized commercial customers in Nebraska, the United States. It offers checking accounts, savings accounts, and certificate of deposit accounts. The company also provides one- to four-family residential mortgage loans secured by properties, as well as commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial loans, multi-family residential real estate loans, construction and land development loans, agricultural real estate and non-real estate loans, and consumer loans. In addition, it offers electronic banking services, including mobile banking, on-line banking and bill pay, and electronic funds transfer. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is based in Grand Island, Nebraska.

About Independent Bank

Independent Bank Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Independent Bank that provides commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in rural and suburban communities in Michigan. It offers checking and savings accounts, commercial lending, direct and indirect consumer financing, mortgage lending, and safe deposit box services. The company also provides title insurance services and investment services, as well as automatic teller machines, and internet and mobile banking services. In addition, it operates through branches, drive-thru facilities, and loan production offices. Independent Bank Corporation was founded in 1864 and is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.