Financial Contrast: Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) and Pinnacle Bank (OTCMKTS:PBNK)

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) and Pinnacle Bank (OTCMKTS:PBNK) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Banc of California and Pinnacle Bank”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Banc of California	$1.89 billion	1.33	$126.89 million	$0.65	26.07
Pinnacle Bank	$53.91 million	2.24	$8.85 million	$1.78	11.42

Banc of California has higher revenue and earnings than Pinnacle Bank. Pinnacle Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Banc of California, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Banc of California and Pinnacle Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Banc of California	8.30%	7.37%	0.65%
Pinnacle Bank	14.83%	7.72%	0.88%

Risk and Volatility

Banc of California has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its stock price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pinnacle Bank has a beta of 0.36, meaning that its stock price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

86.9% of Banc of California shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 8.4% of Pinnacle Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Banc of California shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Banc of California and Pinnacle Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Banc of California	0	4	8	0	2.67
Pinnacle Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

Banc of California currently has a consensus price target of $17.33, indicating a potential upside of 2.29%. Given Banc of California’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Banc of California is more favorable than Pinnacle Bank.

Summary

Banc of California beats Pinnacle Bank on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Banc of California

Banc of California, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Banc of California that provides various banking products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, demand, and time deposits; certificates of deposit; retirement accounts; and safe deposit boxes. It also provides real estate loans to professional developers and real estate investors for the acquisition, construction, refinancing, renovation, and on-going operation of commercial real estate properties; commercial real estate mortgage, residential real estate mortgage, and real estate construction and land loans; commercial loans and leases, such as equipment finance, other asset-based, venture capital, secured business, warehouse, and other lending services; small business administration loans; and consumer loans comprising personal, auto, and other loans, as well as home equity and revolving lines of credit. In addition, the company offers international banking, multi-state deposit, and asset and investment management services, as well as cash and treasury management services; and online, mobile, remote deposit, and telephone banking services. It serves small and middle-market businesses, venture capital firms, non-profit organizations, business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals, and high-net worth individuals. Banc of California, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

About Pinnacle Bank

Pinnacle Bank, a commercial bank, provides various depository and credit services in Santa Clara, San Benito, and Monterey counties. The company offers checking, savings, money market, sweep, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and certificates of deposit account registry services. It also provides home equity lines of credit and single family home construction loans; and loans and lines of credit, letters of credit, commercial real estate, and government assisted loans, as well as credit cards. In addition, the company offers automated teller machine cards/debit cards, debit card protection products, and safe deposit boxes; cash management products, such as online and mobile banking, online bill payment, mobile check deposit, automated clearing house (ACH) origination, remote deposit capture, night depository box, positive pay, ACH fraud filter, merchant card processing, wire transfer, and foreign currency services; and asset based lending covering accounts receivable financing, factoring, and purchase order financing services. It serves individual and business customers, as well as nonprofit organizations in Morgan Hill, Gilroy, Salinas, and Campbell. Pinnacle Bank was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Gilroy, California.