Critical Comparison: United Bancshares (NASDAQ:UBOH) versus FNCB Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNCB)

FNCB Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNCB) and United Bancshares (NASDAQ:UBOH) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for FNCB Bancorp and United Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
FNCB Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A
United Bancshares	0	0	0	0	N/A

Profitability

This table compares FNCB Bancorp and United Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
FNCB Bancorp	14.64%	10.32%	0.70%
United Bancshares	15.77%	11.85%	0.90%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares FNCB Bancorp and United Bancshares’ gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
FNCB Bancorp	$88.67 million	1.20	$12.98 million	$0.66	8.17
United Bancshares	$46.23 million	1.19	$8.61 million	$2.80	6.54

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

Dividends

FNCB Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.7%. United Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. FNCB Bancorp pays out 54.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. United Bancshares pays out 31.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. United Bancshares has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Volatility & Risk

FNCB Bancorp has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its stock price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, United Bancshares has a beta of 0.32, meaning that its stock price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

13.3% of FNCB Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.0% of United Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 18.0% of FNCB Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 6.6% of United Bancshares shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

FNCB Bancorp beats United Bancshares on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About FNCB Bancorp

FNCB Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for FNCB Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, local governments, and municipalities in the United States. The company offers deposit products, such as savings account, money market, checking accounts, and certificate of deposit. It also provides residential mortgage loans, and home equity term loans and lines of credit; construction, land acquisition, and development loans; commercial real estate loans; commercial and industrial loans which includes lines of credit, dealer floor plan lines, equipment loans, vehicle loans, and term loans; commercial equipment financing; consumer loans, such as secured and unsecured installment loans, direct new and used automobile financing, personal lines of credit, and overdraft protection loan; state and political subdivision loans and leases; and purchased loans. In addition, the company offers debit cards and banking through online, mobile, and telephone banking, as well as wealth management services, remote deposit capture, merchant services, treasury services, and purchasing card services. The company was formerly known as First National Community Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to FNCB Bancorp, Inc. in October 2016. FNCB Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Dunmore, Pennsylvania.

About United Bancshares

United Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for The Union Bank Company that provides various commercial and consumer banking services. The company accepts various deposits products, such as checking, savings, demand deposit, money market deposit, term certificate, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. Its loan products include commercial and residential real estate, agricultural, commercial and industrial, home equity, and various types of consumer and small business administration loans. In addition, the company offers wealth management, financial needs analysis, mutual funds, securities trading, annuities, and life insurance services; and treasury management, online and mobile banking, automatic teller machine, bill pay, safe deposit box rental, payment, and other personalized services. It also operates full service banking centers and loan production offices in northwest and central Ohio. United Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Columbus Grove, Ohio.