Comparing ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) and Mission Valley Bancorp (OTCMKTS:MVLY)

ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) and Mission Valley Bancorp (OTCMKTS:MVLY) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares ACNB and Mission Valley Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ACNB	18.47%	11.58%	1.42%
Mission Valley Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for ACNB and Mission Valley Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ACNB	0	1	2	1	3.00
Mission Valley Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

ACNB currently has a consensus target price of $48.67, indicating a potential downside of 1.56%. Given ACNB’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe ACNB is more favorable than Mission Valley Bancorp.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares ACNB and Mission Valley Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ACNB	$132.20 million	3.89	$31.85 million	$3.27	15.12
Mission Valley Bancorp	N/A	N/A	$6.20 million	$1.80	10.00

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

Dividends

ACNB pays an annual dividend of $1.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Mission Valley Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.15 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. ACNB pays out 46.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Mission Valley Bancorp pays out 8.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. ACNB has raised its dividend for 8 consecutive years. ACNB is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

32.4% of ACNB shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 5.7% of Mission Valley Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 3.5% of ACNB 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.

Volatility and Risk

ACNB has a beta of 0.87, meaning that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mission Valley Bancorp has a beta of 0.21, meaning that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

ACNB beats Mission Valley Bancorp on 16 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ACNB

ACNB Corporation, a financial holding company, offers banking, insurance, and financial services to individual, business, and government customers in the United States. The company provides checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits and debit cards. It also offers commercial lending products, such as commercial mortgages, real estate development and construction loans, accounts receivable and inventory financing, and agricultural and governmental loans; consumer lending products, including home equity loans and lines of credit, automobile and recreational vehicle loans, manufactured housing loans, and personal lines of credit; and mortgage lending programs include personal residential mortgages, and residential construction and investment mortgage loans. In addition, the company provides other services that are related to testamentary trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable remainder trusts, guardianships, powers of attorney, custodial accounts, and investment management and advisory accounts; and retail brokerage services. Further, it acts as a trustee to invest in, protect, manage, and distribute financial assets. Additionally, the company offers property and casualty, health, life, and disability insurance products to commercial and personal clients; and online, telephone, and mobile banking, as well as automated teller machine services. ACNB Corporation was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

About Mission Valley Bancorp

Mission Valley Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Mission Valley Bank and Mission SBA Loan Servicing LLC that provides various banking products and services to individuals and corporate customers. The company's deposit products include non-interest-bearing and interest-bearing demand deposits, savings, and time deposits; and certificates of deposit. It also offers accounts receivable loans, advanced restaurant financing loans, commercial loans, real estate loans, small business administration loans, and term loans; consumer loans; and overdraft facilities; as well as credit and debit cards. In addition, the company provides lending services, such as underwriting, processing, closing, servicing, and referral/replacement services to other financial institutions. Mission Valley Bancorp was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Sun Valley, California.