Head-To-Head Comparison: United Security Bancshares (NASDAQ:UBFO) and TriCo Bancshares (NASDAQ:TCBK)

United Security Bancshares (NASDAQ:UBFO) and TriCo Bancshares (NASDAQ:TCBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, profitability, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares United Security Bancshares and TriCo Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Security Bancshares	$65.46 million	2.39	$14.78 million	$0.66	13.56
TriCo Bancshares	$531.04 million	2.63	$114.87 million	$3.40	12.63

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for United Security Bancshares and TriCo Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Security Bancshares	0	0	1	0	3.00
TriCo Bancshares	0	4	3	0	2.43

TriCo Bancshares has a consensus price target of $47.60, suggesting a potential upside of 10.85%. Given TriCo Bancshares’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe TriCo Bancshares is more favorable than United Security Bancshares.

Profitability

This table compares United Security Bancshares and TriCo Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Security Bancshares	17.07%	8.43%	0.92%
TriCo Bancshares	21.11%	8.99%	1.14%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

30.9% of United Security Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.1% of TriCo Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 22.1% of United Security Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.8% of TriCo Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

United Security Bancshares has a beta of 0.42, suggesting that its stock price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TriCo Bancshares has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

United Security Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.4%. TriCo Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. United Security Bancshares pays out 72.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. TriCo Bancshares pays out 42.4% 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. United Security Bancshares has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and TriCo Bancshares has raised its dividend for 12 consecutive years.

Summary

TriCo Bancshares beats United Security Bancshares on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Security Bancshares

United Security Bancshares operates as the bank holding company for United Security Bank, a state-chartered bank that provides a range of commercial banking services to the business and professional community, and individuals in California. The company accepts various deposit products, including personal and business checking accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, and time certificates of deposit. It also provides real estate mortgage, commercial and industrial, real estate construction and development, and consumer loans, as well as agricultural, installment, and student loans. In addition, the company offers online and mobile banking, safe deposit boxes, wire transfers, payroll direct deposit, cashier's check, cash management, and foreign draft services, as well as interactive teller machines; and person-to-person and bank-to-bank transfers for consumer customers. United Security Bancshares was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Fresno, California.

About TriCo Bancshares

TriCo Bancshares operates as a bank holding company for Tri Counties Bank that provides commercial banking services to individual and corporate customers. The company accepts demand, savings, and time deposits. It also provides small business loans; real estate mortgage loans, such as residential and commercial loans; consumer loans; mortgage, auto, other vehicle, and personal loans; commercial loans, including agricultural loans; and real estate construction loans. In addition, the company offers treasury management services; credit and debit cards; and other customary banking services, including safe deposit boxes; and independent financial and broker-dealer services. Further, it provides checking, saving, and money market accounts, as well as individual retirement accounts; equipment financing; certificate of deposit account registry service; certificated of deposit; and IntraFi cash service. TriCo Bancshares was founded in 1975 and is headquartered in Chico, California.