FB Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBLA) versus South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Critical Review

FB Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBLA) and South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares FB Bancorp and South Plains Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
FB Bancorp	0.83%	0.93%	0.24%
South Plains Financial	20.22%	12.58%	1.35%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares FB Bancorp and South Plains Financial”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
FB Bancorp	$69.94 million	3.23	$1.25 million	$0.04	349.00
South Plains Financial	$296.89 million	2.54	$58.47 million	$3.57	11.03

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

55.0% of South Plains Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.9% of FB Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 24.3% of South Plains Financial shares are owned 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.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for FB Bancorp and South Plains Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
FB Bancorp	1	0	0	0	1.00
South Plains Financial	0	1	5	0	2.83

South Plains Financial has a consensus price target of $46.25, indicating a potential upside of 17.45%. Given South Plains Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe South Plains Financial is more favorable than FB Bancorp.

Summary

South Plains Financial beats FB Bancorp on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About FB Bancorp

FB Bancorp Inc. operates as a bank holding company for Fidelity Bank. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides deposit accounts, mortgages, home equity and consumer loans, credit and debit cards, online and mobile banking, investments and other financial services. FB Bancorp Inc. is based in New Orleans.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for City Bank that provides commercial and consumer financial services to small and medium-sized businesses and individuals. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It offers deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing products, savings accounts, and certificate of deposits. The company also provides commercial real estate loans; general and specialized commercial loans, including agricultural production and real estate, energy, finance, investment, and insurance loans, as well as loans to goods, services, restaurant and retail, construction, and other industries; residential construction loans; and 1-4 family residential loans, auto loans, and other loans for recreational vehicles or other purposes. In addition, it offers crop insurance products; trust products and services; investment services; mortgage banking services; online and mobile banking services; and debit and credit cards. The company was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Lubbock, Texas.