Comparing Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) and First National of Nebraska (OTCMKTS:FINN)

First National of Nebraska (OTCMKTS:FINN) and Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability and dividends.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.7% of First National of Nebraska shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 52.3% of Bank of Marin Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 41.7% of First National of Nebraska shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.1% of Bank of Marin Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for First National of Nebraska and Bank of Marin Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First National of Nebraska	0	0	0	0	0.00
Bank of Marin Bancorp	1	2	3	0	2.33

Bank of Marin Bancorp has a consensus target price of $30.10, suggesting a potential upside of 21.86%. Given Bank of Marin Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Bank of Marin Bancorp is more favorable than First National of Nebraska.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares First National of Nebraska and Bank of Marin Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First National of Nebraska	$3.23 billion	1.40	$412.43 million	N/A	N/A
Bank of Marin Bancorp	$93.05 million	4.28	-$35.67 million	($2.25)	-10.98

First National of Nebraska has higher revenue and earnings than Bank of Marin Bancorp.

Profitability

This table compares First National of Nebraska and Bank of Marin Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First National of Nebraska	N/A	N/A	N/A
Bank of Marin Bancorp	-21.76%	6.16%	0.69%

Risk & Volatility

First National of Nebraska has a beta of 0.13, meaning that its share price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bank of Marin Bancorp has a beta of 0.89, meaning that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

First National of Nebraska pays an annual dividend of $160.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Bank of Marin Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Bank of Marin Bancorp pays out -44.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Bank of Marin Bancorp beats First National of Nebraska on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First National of Nebraska

First National of Nebraska, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for First National Bank of Omaha that provides various banking products and services. The company offers checking, savings, and individual retirement accounts; certificates of deposit; and credit cards. It also provides personal loans and lines of credit; auto loans; mortgage loans; home equity lines of credit and loans; small business loans and lines of credit; small business administration loans; and commercial lending solutions. In addition, the company offers treasury management, debt consolidation, financial planning, retirement planning, wealth management, merchant, and payroll services; and personal, commercial, and farm insurance products. Further, it provides solutions for agribusiness, commercial real estate, healthcare, transportation, and correspondent banking; investment services, such as capital market and institutional asset management; and digital banking services. First National of Nebraska, Inc. was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.

About Bank of Marin Bancorp

Bank of Marin Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Marin that provides a range of financial services primarily to small to medium-sized businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and commercial real estate investors in the United States. The company offers personal and business checking and savings accounts; and individual retirement, health savings, and demand deposit marketplace accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit, certificate of deposit account registry, and insured cash sweep services. It also provides commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, and consumer loans, as well as construction financing and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers merchant and payroll services; commercial equipment leasing program; payment solutions; treasury management services; credit cards; and mobile deposit, remote deposit capture, automated clearing house, wire transfer, and image lockbox services. Further, it provides wealth management and trust services comprising customized investment portfolio management, financial planning, trust administration, estate settlement, and custody services, as well as 401(k) plan services; and automated teller machines, and telephone and digital banking services. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is headquartered in Novato, California.