Analyzing Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) & Security Bancorp (OTCMKTS:SCYT)

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) and Security Bancorp (OTCMKTS:SCYT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and risk.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Columbia Financial and Security Bancorp’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Columbia Financial	$422.36 million	3.96	$36.09 million	$0.35	45.51
Security Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Columbia Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Security Bancorp.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

12.7% of Columbia Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 2.5% of Columbia Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Columbia Financial and Security Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Columbia Financial	8.54%	4.94%	0.49%
Security Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Columbia Financial and Security Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Columbia Financial	0	1	1	0	2.50
Security Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A

Columbia Financial presently has a consensus price target of $18.50, indicating a potential upside of 16.13%. Given Columbia Financial’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Columbia Financial is more favorable than Security Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

Columbia Financial has a beta of 0.21, indicating that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Security Bancorp has a beta of 0.11, indicating that its share price is 89% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Columbia Financial beats Security Bancorp on 9 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Columbia Financial

Columbia Financial, Inc., a bank holding company, provides various financial services to businesses and consumers in the United States. Its deposit products include checking, interest-earning checking products and municipal, savings and club deposits, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides various loans, including multifamily and commercial real estate loans, commercial business loans, one-to-four family residential loans, construction loans, home equity loans and advances, and other consumer loans, such as automobiles and personal loans, as well as unsecured and overdraft lines of credit. In addition, it offers title insurance products; wealth management services; and cash management services comprising remote deposit, lockbox service, sweep accounts, and escrow services. The company operates full-service banking offices in New Jersey; and branch offices in Freehold, New Jersey. Columbia Financial, Inc. was founded in 1926 and is based in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Columbia Financial, Inc. is a subsidiary of Columbia Bank MHC.

About Security Bancorp

Security Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Security Federal Savings Bank that provides banking products and services to individual and corporate customers in Tennessee. The company's deposit products include checking and savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. It also offers consumer loans; mortgage loans; commercial loans, including installment loans and lines of credit; residential real estate loans; and acquisition and development loans. In addition, the company provides financial services that include individual retirement accounts; mutual funds, stocks, and bonds; rollovers; transfers; fixed, variable, indexed, and immediate annuities; life insurance; college planning; and bill payment products and services, as well as online, mobile, and telephone banking services. Security Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1960 and is headquartered in McMinnville, Tennessee.