Contrasting Princeton Bancorp (NASDAQ:BPRN) & LCNB (NASDAQ:LCNB)

Princeton Bancorp (NASDAQ:BPRN) and LCNB (NASDAQ:LCNB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations and risk.

Dividends

Princeton Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. LCNB pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Princeton Bancorp pays out 54.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. LCNB pays out 52.7% 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. LCNB has raised its dividend for 7 consecutive years. LCNB is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Princeton Bancorp and LCNB, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Princeton Bancorp	0	2	0	1	2.67
LCNB	0	2	0	0	2.00

Princeton Bancorp presently has a consensus target price of $35.00, suggesting a potential downside of 2.45%. LCNB has a consensus target price of $16.25, suggesting a potential downside of 6.29%. Given Princeton Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Princeton Bancorp is more favorable than LCNB.

Risk & Volatility

Princeton Bancorp has a beta of 0.52, suggesting that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LCNB has a beta of 0.57, suggesting that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

43.4% of Princeton Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 34.7% of LCNB shares are owned by institutional investors. 23.0% of Princeton Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.0% of LCNB 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.

Profitability

This table compares Princeton Bancorp and LCNB’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Princeton Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A
LCNB	18.63%	9.05%	1.03%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Princeton Bancorp and LCNB”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Princeton Bancorp	$131.10 million	1.85	$17.37 million	$2.57	13.96
LCNB	$125.42 million	1.96	$13.49 million	$1.67	10.38

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

Summary

Princeton Bancorp beats LCNB on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Princeton Bancorp

Princeton Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for The Bank of Princeton that provides various banking products and services. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, attorney trust, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also offers traditional retail banking services, one-to-four-family residential mortgage loans, multi-family and commercial mortgage loans, construction loans, and commercial business loans, as well as consumer loans, including home equity loans and lines of credit. In addition, it provides debit and credit cards, and money orders, direct deposit, automated teller machines, cashier's checks, safe deposit boxes, online banking, wire transfers, night depository, remote deposit capture, bank-by-mail, online, and automated telephone banking services, as well as payroll-related services and merchant credit card processing services. Further, the company offers full on-line statements, on-line bill payment, account inquiries, mobile banking, transaction histories and details, and account-to-account transfer services. Princeton Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey.

About LCNB

LCNB Corp. operates as the financial holding company for LCNB National Bank that provides banking services in Ohio. Its deposit products include checking accounts, demand deposits, savings accounts, NOW and money market deposits, as well as individual retirement accounts and time certificates. The company's loan products comprise commercial and industrial, commercial and residential real estate, agricultural, construction, and small business administration loans; and residential mortgage loans that consists of loans for purchasing or refinancing personal residences, home equity lines of credit, and loans for commercial or consumer purposes secured by residential mortgages. It offers consumer loans, such as automobile, recreational vehicles, boat, home improvement, and personal loans. In addition, the company provides trust administration, estate settlement, and fiduciary services; and investment management services for trusts, agency accounts, individual retirement accounts, and foundations/endowments. Further, it offers investment services and products, including financial needs analysis, mutual funds, securities trading, annuities, and life insurance; and security brokerage services. Additionally, the company provides safe deposit boxes, night depositories, cashier's checks, bank-by-mail, ATMs, cash and transaction services, debit cards, wire transfers, electronic funds transfer, utility bill collections, notary public service, cash management services, telephone banking, PC Internet banking, mobile banking, and other services for individuals and businesses. LCNB Corp. was founded in 1877 and is headquartered in Lebanon, Ohio.