Head to Head Review: Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) versus First National Bank Alaska (OTCMKTS:FBAK)

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) and First National Bank Alaska (OTCMKTS:FBAK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings, risk, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Hope Bancorp and First National Bank Alaska, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hope Bancorp	0	1	1	0	2.50
First National Bank Alaska	0	0	0	0	0.00

Hope Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $13.25, suggesting a potential upside of 18.94%. Given Hope Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Hope Bancorp is more favorable than First National Bank Alaska.

Profitability

This table compares Hope Bancorp and First National Bank Alaska’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hope Bancorp	4.27%	4.45%	0.55%
First National Bank Alaska	N/A	14.33%	1.48%

Dividends

Hope Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.0%. First National Bank Alaska pays an annual dividend of $16.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.1%. Hope Bancorp pays out 160.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. First National Bank Alaska pays out 68.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First National Bank Alaska is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

84.0% of Hope Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 5.2% of Hope Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Hope Bancorp and First National Bank Alaska”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hope Bancorp	$1.00 billion	1.43	$99.63 million	$0.35	31.83
First National Bank Alaska	$87.73 million	9.40	$67.05 million	$23.37	11.14

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

Volatility and Risk

Hope Bancorp has a beta of 0.94, meaning that its stock price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First National Bank Alaska has a beta of 0.32, meaning that its stock price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Hope Bancorp beats First National Bank Alaska on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Hope that provides retail and commercial banking services for businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts personal and business checking, money market, savings, time deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers loans comprising commercial and industrial loans to businesses for various purposes, such as working capital, purchasing inventory, debt refinancing, business acquisitions, international trade finance, other business-related financing, and loans syndication services; commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; small business administration loans; and consumer loans, such as single-family mortgage, home equity, automobile, credit card, and personal loans. In addition, it provides internet banking and bill-pay, remote deposit capture, lock box, and ACH origination services; treasury management services; foreign currency exchange transactions; interest rate contracts and wealth management services; automated teller machine services; and engages in investment activities. Hope Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

About First National Bank Alaska

First National Bank Alaska, a commercial bank, provides various banking products and services for business, industry, and individual customers primarily in Alaska. The company offers savings and checking accounts; money market deposits; safe deposit services; certificates of deposit; individual retirement accounts; and personal, home equity, and construction loans, as well as loans for stability and growth. It also provides investment, treasury, trust, and wealth management services; and escrow and contract collection, and bankcard services. In addition, the company offers debit and credit cards, online and mobile banking, fraud prevention, and convenience banking services. First National Bank Alaska was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska.