First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) & Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Critical Comparison

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) and First Northwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWB) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Columbia Banking System and First Northwest Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Columbia Banking System	$3.21 billion	2.40	$550.00 million	$2.26	11.57
First Northwest Bancorp	$118.64 million	0.68	-$4.19 million	$0.72	11.82

Columbia Banking System has higher revenue and earnings than First Northwest Bancorp. Columbia Banking System 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 Columbia Banking System and First Northwest Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Columbia Banking System	17.11%	11.40%	1.26%
First Northwest Bancorp	5.35%	4.18%	0.30%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

92.5% of Columbia Banking System shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.1% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of Columbia Banking System shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of First Northwest Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Columbia Banking System and First Northwest Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Columbia Banking System	0	11	3	1	2.33
First Northwest Bancorp	1	2	1	0	2.00

Columbia Banking System presently has a consensus target price of $32.04, suggesting a potential upside of 22.56%. First Northwest Bancorp has a consensus target price of $13.50, suggesting a potential upside of 58.64%. Given First Northwest Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Northwest Bancorp is more favorable than Columbia Banking System.

Risk & Volatility

Columbia Banking System has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Northwest Bancorp has a beta of 0.57, indicating that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Columbia Banking System beats First Northwest Bancorp on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Columbia Banking System

Columbia Banking System, Inc. operates as the holding company of Umpqua Bank that provides banking, private banking, mortgage, and other financial services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business, non-interest bearing checking, interest-bearing checking and savings, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and insured cash sweep and other investment sweep solutions. It also provides commercial lending products, such as commercial lines of credit and term loans, accounts receivable and inventory financing, international trade finance, commercial property loans, multifamily loans, equipment loans, commercial equipment leases, real estate construction loans and permanent financing, and small business administration program financing, as well as capital markets. In addition, the company offers wealth management comprising financial planning, investment, trust, and insurance; treasury management, which includes digital and mobile banking solutions, ACH, wires, positive pay, remote deposit capture, integrated payments, integrated receivables, lockbox, cash vault, real-time payments, commercial card, and foreign exchange and international banking related products, as well as merchant services; and brokerage services, residential real estate loans and consumer loans. It serves its products to corporate, institutional, small business, and individual customers. The company was founded in 1953 and is headquartered in Tacoma, Washington.

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.