Catalyst Bancorp (NASDAQ:CLST) versus Riverview Bancorp (NASDAQ:RVSB) Critical Review

Catalyst Bancorp (NASDAQ:CLST – Get Rating) and Riverview Bancorp (NASDAQ:RVSB – Get Rating) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Volatility and Risk

Catalyst Bancorp has a beta of 0.08, indicating that its stock price is 92% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Riverview Bancorp has a beta of 0.74, indicating that its stock price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Catalyst Bancorp and Riverview Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Catalyst Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A
Riverview Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Catalyst Bancorp and Riverview Bancorp’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Catalyst Bancorp	$8.34 million	8.24	$180,000.00	$0.05	259.60
Riverview Bancorp	$62.57 million	2.43	$21.82 million	$0.88	8.02

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

20.0% of Catalyst Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 63.0% of Riverview Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.6% of Catalyst Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.0% of Riverview Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Catalyst Bancorp and Riverview Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Catalyst Bancorp	2.14%	0.21%	0.07%
Riverview Bancorp	28.98%	12.58%	1.14%

Summary

Riverview Bancorp beats Catalyst Bancorp on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Catalyst Bancorp

(Get Rating)

Catalyst Bancorp, Inc. operates as a holding company for Catalyst Bank that provides commercial and retail banking products. The company accepts various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand and NOW accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. It also offers single-family residential first mortgage loans, commercial real estate mortgage loans, multi-family residential mortgage loans, commercial and industrial loans, construction and land loans, consumer loans, and other loans. In addition, the company invests in various types of securities comprising mortgage-backed securities, the U.S. treasury obligations, securities of various federal agencies and of state and municipal governments, certificates of deposit at federally insured banks and savings institutions, and federal funds. It operates through six full-service branches located in Carencro, Eunice, Lafayette, Opelousas, and Port Barre. The company was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Opelousas, Louisiana.

About Riverview Bancorp

(Get Rating)

Riverview Bancorp, Inc. operates as a holding company. It provides community banking services to small and medium size businesses, professionals, and individuals. It offers a range of deposit products, including demand deposits, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and retirement savings plans. The company also provides commercial business, commercial real estate, other real estate mortgage, and real estate construction loans, and consumer loans, such as one-to-four family mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, land loans, and other secured and unsecured consumer loans. In addition, it is involved in the provision of mortgage brokerage and mortgage loan servicing activities, as well as offering asset management services consisting of trust, estate planning, and investment management services. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Vancouver, WA.