Contrasting Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) and Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCAL)

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) and Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Simmons First National and Southern California Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Simmons First National	12.82%	6.19%	0.75%
Southern California Bancorp	24.41%	11.10%	1.30%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

13.1% of Simmons First National shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.0% of Southern California Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 1.8% of Simmons First National shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 35.9% of Southern California Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Simmons First National and Southern California Bancorp’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Simmons First National	$1.37 billion	1.66	$175.06 million	$1.38	13.14
Southern California Bancorp	$97.25 million	2.72	$16.11 million	N/A	N/A

Simmons First National has higher revenue and earnings than Southern California Bancorp.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Simmons First National and Southern California Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Simmons First National	0	2	0	0	2.00
Southern California Bancorp	0	1	1	0	2.50

Simmons First National currently has a consensus target price of $20.00, suggesting a potential upside of 10.31%. Given Simmons First National’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Simmons First National is more favorable than Southern California Bancorp.

Summary

Southern California Bancorp beats Simmons First National on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Simmons First National

Simmons First National Corporation operates as the holding company for Simmons Bank that provides banking and other financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company offers checking, savings, and time deposits; consumer, real estate, and commercial loans; agricultural finance, equipment, and small business administration lending; trust and fiduciary services; credit cards; investment management products; treasury management; insurance products; and securities and investment services. It also provides ATM services; Internet and mobile banking platforms; overdraft facilities; and safe deposit boxes. The company was founded in 1903 and is headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

About Southern 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.