Financial Contrast: Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) vs. First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB)

Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) and First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk, dividends and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Bank of Marin Bancorp and First Northwest Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Bank of Marin Bancorp	0	2	3	1	2.83
First Northwest Bancorp	2	1	2	0	2.00

Bank of Marin Bancorp presently has a consensus target price of $28.40, suggesting a potential upside of 7.66%. First Northwest Bancorp has a consensus target price of $13.50, suggesting a potential upside of 43.31%. Given First Northwest Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Northwest Bancorp is more favorable than Bank of Marin Bancorp.

Risk & Volatility

Bank of Marin Bancorp has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Northwest Bancorp has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

52.3% of Bank of Marin Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.1% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.7% of Bank of Marin Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Bank of Marin Bancorp and First Northwest Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Bank of Marin Bancorp	6.22%	5.25%	0.61%
First Northwest Bancorp	2.67%	2.10%	0.15%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Bank of Marin Bancorp and First Northwest Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Bank of Marin Bancorp	$93.05 million	4.56	-$8.41 million	$0.62	42.55
First Northwest Bancorp	$124.95 million	0.71	-$6.61 million	$0.36	26.17

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

Summary

Bank of Marin Bancorp beats First Northwest Bancorp on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Bank of Marin Bancorp

Bank of Marin Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Marin that provides a range of financial services primarily to small to medium-sized businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and commercial real estate investors in the United States. The company offers personal and business checking and savings accounts; and individual retirement, health savings, and demand deposit marketplace accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit, certificate of deposit account registry, and insured cash sweep services. It also provides commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, and consumer loans, as well as construction financing and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers merchant and payroll services; commercial equipment leasing program; payment solutions; treasury management services; credit cards; and mobile deposit, remote deposit capture, automated clearing house, wire transfer, and image lockbox services. Further, it provides wealth management and trust services comprising customized investment portfolio management, financial planning, trust administration, estate settlement, and custody services, as well as 401(k) plan services; and automated teller machines, and telephone and digital banking services. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is headquartered in Novato, 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.