Carver Bancorp (NASDAQ:CARV) vs. OP Bancorp (NASDAQ:OPBK) Critical Contrast

OP Bancorp (NASDAQ:OPBK) and Carver Bancorp (NASDAQ:CARV) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares OP Bancorp and Carver Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
OP Bancorp	16.87%	12.59%	1.08%
Carver Bancorp	-34.89%	-171.55%	-1.82%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares OP Bancorp and Carver Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
OP Bancorp	$166.66 million	1.38	$25.64 million	$1.93	7.98
Carver Bancorp	$22.74 million	0.50	-$13.74 million	($1.36)	-1.33

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

53.6% of OP Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.2% of Carver Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 9.6% of OP Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of Carver Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for OP Bancorp and Carver Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
OP Bancorp	0	1	2	1	3.00
Carver Bancorp	1	0	0	0	1.00

OP Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $17.75, indicating a potential upside of 15.18%. Given OP Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe OP Bancorp is more favorable than Carver Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

OP Bancorp has a beta of 0.6, meaning that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Carver Bancorp has a beta of 1.41, meaning that its share price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

OP Bancorp beats Carver Bancorp on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About OP Bancorp

OP Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Open Bank that provides banking products and services in California. It offers demand, checking, savings, money market, and time deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides commercial real estate, small business administration, commercial and industrial business, single-family residential, term, consumer, and home mortgage loans; trade financing products; and letters of credit, and SWIFT and export advice. In addition, it offers debit and credit card, online transfer and bill payment, electronic delivery of customer statements, and mobile banking solutions for iPhone and Android phones, including remote check deposit with mobile bill pay; direct deposits, cashier's checks, person to person payments, wire transfers, and automated clearing house (ACH) services; and cash management services, including balance reporting, transfers between accounts, wire transfer initiation, ACH origination, and stop payment services, as well as remote deposit capture, positive pay, zero balance accounts, and sweep accounts. The company operates full branch offices in Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles Fashion District, Los Angeles Koreatown, Gardena, Buena Park, and Santa Clara in California; and Carrollton, Texas; and operates loan production offices in Pleasanton, California; Atlanta, Georgia; Aurora, Colorado; and Lynnwood in Washington. The company was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

About Carver Bancorp

Carver Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Carver Federal Savings Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking services for consumers, businesses, non-profit organizations, and governmental and quasi-governmental agencies primarily in New York. It accepts various deposit products, including demand, savings, and time deposits; passbook and statement accounts, and certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts. The company provides lending products, such as one-to-four family residential, multifamily real estate, and commercial real estate lending; and construction, business and small business administration, and consumer and other loans. In addition, it offers other consumer and commercial banking products and services, including debit cards, online account opening and banking, online bill pay, and telephone banking, as well as check cashing, wire transfer, bill payment, reloadable prepaid card, and money order services. Carver Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in New York, New York.