Central Plains Bancshares (NASDAQ:CPBI) & First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Head to Head Analysis

Central Plains Bancshares (NASDAQ:CPBI) and First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, dividends, earnings and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

Central Plains Bancshares has a beta of 0.14, suggesting that its share price is 86% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Merchants has a beta of 1.1, suggesting that its share price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

24.3% of Central Plains Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.9% of First Merchants shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.6% of Central Plains Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of First Merchants shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Central Plains Bancshares and First Merchants’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Central Plains Bancshares	13.34%	4.52%	0.76%
First Merchants	21.35%	9.88%	1.23%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Central Plains Bancshares and First Merchants”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Central Plains Bancshares	$27.31 million	2.51	$3.65 million	$0.99	16.38
First Merchants	$1.07 billion	2.17	$201.40 million	$3.86	10.44

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Central Plains Bancshares and First Merchants, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Central Plains Bancshares	0	0	0	0	0.00
First Merchants	0	0	4	0	3.00

First Merchants has a consensus target price of $48.25, suggesting a potential upside of 19.73%. Given First Merchants’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe First Merchants is more favorable than Central Plains Bancshares.

Summary

First Merchants beats Central Plains Bancshares on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Central Plains Bancshares

Central Plains Bancshares, Inc. focuses on providing various banking products and services to retail customers, and small and medium-sized commercial customers in Nebraska, the United States. It offers checking accounts, savings accounts, and certificate of deposit accounts. The company also provides one- to four-family residential mortgage loans secured by properties, as well as commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial loans, multi-family residential real estate loans, construction and land development loans, agricultural real estate and non-real estate loans, and consumer loans. In addition, it offers electronic banking services, including mobile banking, on-line banking and bill pay, and electronic funds transfer. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is based in Grand Island, Nebraska.

About First Merchants

First Merchants Corporation operates as the financial holding company for First Merchants Bank that provides community banking services. The company offers a range of financial services, including time, savings, and demand deposits; and consumer, commercial, agri-business, public finance, and real estate mortgage loans. It also provides personal and corporate trust; brokerage and private wealth management; and letters of credit, repurchase agreements, and other corporate services. The company operates banking locations in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan counties. It also offers its services through electronic and mobile delivery channels. First Merchants Corporation was founded in 1893 and is headquartered in Muncie, Indiana.