Reviewing FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) and California First Leasing (OTCMKTS:CFNB)

California First Leasing (OTCMKTS:CFNB) and FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, earnings, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

California First Leasing has a beta of 0.16, suggesting that its share price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, FS Bancorp has a beta of 0.71, suggesting that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for California First Leasing and FS Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
California First Leasing	0	0	0	0	0.00
FS Bancorp	0	1	1	0	2.50

FS Bancorp has a consensus price target of $45.00, suggesting a potential upside of 7.42%. Given FS Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe FS Bancorp is more favorable than California First Leasing.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

6.5% of California First Leasing shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 63.9% of FS Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 92.2% of California First Leasing shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 12.7% of FS Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares California First Leasing and FS Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
California First Leasing	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
FS Bancorp	$219.52 million	1.44	$33.35 million	$4.28	9.79

FS Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than California First Leasing.

Profitability

This table compares California First Leasing and FS Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
California First Leasing	N/A	N/A	N/A
FS Bancorp	15.19%	11.16%	1.06%

Summary

FS Bancorp beats California First Leasing on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About California First Leasing

California First Leasing Corporation provides loans and lease financing for universities, businesses, and other commercial or non-profit organizations. The company was formerly known as California First National Bancorp and changed its name to California First Leasing Corporation in February 2021. California First Leasing Corporation was founded in 1977 and is based in Newport Beach, California.

About FS Bancorp

FS Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for 1st Security Bank of Washington that provides banking and financial services to local families, local and regional businesses, and industry niches. The company operates in two segments, Commercial and Consumer Banking; and Home Lending. It offers various deposit instruments, including checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company provides one-to-four-family residential first mortgages, second mortgage/home equity loan products, non-mortgage commercial business loans, commercial real estate loans, and construction and development loans, as well as consumer loans, which primarily include personal lines of credit, credit cards, automobile, direct home improvement, loans on deposit, and recreational loans. It operates full bank service branches and home loan production offices in suburban communities in the greater Puget Sound area, including Snohomish, King, Pierce, Jefferson, Kitsap, Clallam, Grays Harbor, and Thurston counties; and a loan production office in the market area of the Tri-Cities. FS Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Mountlake Terrace, Washington.