Oxford Bank (OTCMKTS:OXBC) and First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Critical Comparison

Oxford Bank (OTCMKTS:OXBC) and First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

4.5% of Oxford Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 72.6% of First Commonwealth Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.2% of First Commonwealth Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Oxford Bank and First Commonwealth Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Oxford Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A
First Commonwealth Financial	18.94%	9.71%	1.18%

Risk and Volatility

Oxford Bank has a beta of 0.15, meaning that its share price is 85% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Commonwealth Financial has a beta of 0.85, meaning that its share price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Oxford Bank and First Commonwealth Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Oxford Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00
First Commonwealth Financial	0	2	3	0	2.60

First Commonwealth Financial has a consensus target price of $18.90, suggesting a potential upside of 7.52%. Given First Commonwealth Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Commonwealth Financial is more favorable than Oxford Bank.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Oxford Bank and First Commonwealth Financial”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Oxford Bank	$57.89 million	1.50	$9.96 million	$4.08	8.65
First Commonwealth Financial	$699.69 million	2.63	$142.57 million	$1.30	13.52

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

Summary

First Commonwealth Financial beats Oxford Bank on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Oxford Bank

Oxford Bank Corporation provides banking products and services to various customers in Michigan. Its deposit products include savings, checking, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company's loan portfolio comprises home mortgage, home equity, auto, student, term, commercial real estate, and small business administration loans, as well as lines of credit. It also offers cash management, merchant card, remote deposit capture, payroll, overdraft protection, wire transfer, night depository, and notary services, as well as safe deposit box and interactive teller machine services; online, telephone, and mobile banking services; debit and credit cards; and insurance products. The company operates its branches in Clarkston, Davison, Dryden, Lake Orion, Ortonville, Oxford, and Oakland. Oxford Bank Corporation was founded in 1884 and is based in Oxford, Michigan.

About First Commonwealth Financial

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various consumer and commercial banking services in the United States. Its consumer services include personal checking accounts, interest-earning checking accounts, savings and health savings accounts, insured money market accounts, debit cards, investment certificates, fixed and variable rate certificates of deposit, mortgage loans, secured and unsecured installment loans, construction and real estate loans, safe deposit facilities, credit cards, credit lines with overdraft checking protection, IRA accounts, and automated teller machine (atm) services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services. The company's commercial banking services comprise commercial lending, business checking accounts, online account management services, payroll direct deposits, commercial cash management services, and repurchase agreements, as well as ACH origination services. In addition, it offers various trust and asset management services; auto, home, and business insurance, as well as term life insurance; and annuities, mutual funds, and stock and bond brokerage services through a broker-dealer and insurance brokers. The company was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania.