First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) & Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Head-To-Head Contrast

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) and First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and valuation.

Dividends

Westamerica Bancorporation pays an annual dividend of $1.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. First Northwest Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Westamerica Bancorporation pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Northwest Bancorp pays out 700.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Westamerica Bancorporation has increased its dividend for 34 consecutive years. Westamerica Bancorporation is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Westamerica Bancorporation and First Northwest Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Westamerica Bancorporation	$311.17 million	3.80	$138.64 million	$4.78	9.72
First Northwest Bancorp	$65.22 million	1.15	-$6.61 million	$0.04	198.75

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

Profitability

This table compares Westamerica Bancorporation and First Northwest Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Westamerica Bancorporation	43.69%	13.81%	2.09%
First Northwest Bancorp	0.32%	0.25%	0.02%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

81.9% of Westamerica Bancorporation shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.1% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.3% of Westamerica Bancorporation shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Westamerica Bancorporation has a beta of 0.61, suggesting that its stock price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Northwest Bancorp has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Westamerica Bancorporation and First Northwest Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Westamerica Bancorporation	0	3	0	0	2.00
First Northwest Bancorp	1	1	1	0	2.00

Westamerica Bancorporation currently has a consensus target price of $52.00, indicating a potential upside of 11.90%. First Northwest Bancorp has a consensus target price of $12.75, indicating a potential upside of 60.38%. Given First Northwest Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Northwest Bancorp is more favorable than Westamerica Bancorporation.

Summary

Westamerica Bancorporation beats First Northwest Bancorp on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio includes commercial, commercial and residential real estate, real estate construction, and consumer installment loans, as well as indirect automobile loans. The company was formerly known as Independent Bankshares Corporation and changed its name to Westamerica Bancorporation in 1983. The company was founded in 1884 and is headquartered in San Rafael, California.

About First Northwest Bancorp

First Northwest Bancorp operates as a bank holding company for First Fed Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services to individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations in western Washington, the United States. The company accepts various deposit instruments, including checking, money market deposit, savings, and transaction accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also originates one- to four-family mortgage loans, commercial and multi-family real estate loans, construction and land loans, and commercial business loans, as well as consumer loans primarily consisting of automobile loans, and home-equity loans and lines of credit. First Northwest Bancorp operates branch offices in Clallam, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, and Whatcom Counties, Washington. First Northwest Bancorp was founded in 1923 and is based in Port Angeles, Washington.