Franklin Financial Services (FRAF) and Its Competitors Critical Review

Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) is one of 919 publicly-traded companies in the “Banks” industry, but how does it compare to its competitors? We will compare Franklin Financial Services to related businesses based on the strength of its risk, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Dividends

Franklin Financial Services pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Franklin Financial Services pays out 22.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Banks” companies pay a dividend yield of 9.3% and pay out 28.9% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Franklin Financial Services has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Franklin Financial Services and its competitors revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Franklin Financial Services	$133.55 million	$21.23 million	11.16
Franklin Financial Services Competitors	$9.95 billion	$2.42 billion	20.29

Franklin Financial Services’ competitors have higher revenue and earnings than Franklin Financial Services. Franklin Financial Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Volatility & Risk

Franklin Financial Services has a beta of -0.04, suggesting that its stock price is 104% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Franklin Financial Services’ competitors have a beta of 0.61, suggesting that their average stock price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Franklin Financial Services and its competitors, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Franklin Financial Services	0	1	1	0	2.50
Franklin Financial Services Competitors	7482	30219	27791	1473	2.35

Franklin Financial Services presently has a consensus price target of $68.00, suggesting a potential downside of 1.56%. As a group, “Banks” companies have a potential upside of 17.13%. Given Franklin Financial Services’ competitors higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Franklin Financial Services has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Profitability

This table compares Franklin Financial Services and its competitors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Franklin Financial Services	20.43%	15.52%	1.21%
Franklin Financial Services Competitors	15.66%	9.44%	0.93%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

24.8% of Franklin Financial Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 48.0% of shares of all “Banks” companies are owned by institutional investors. 5.9% of Franklin Financial Services shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 9.7% of shares of all “Banks” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Franklin Financial Services competitors beat Franklin Financial Services on 9 of the 15 factors compared.

About Franklin Financial Services

Franklin Financial Services Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Farmers and Merchants Trust Company of Chambersburg that provides commercial, retail banking, and trust services to businesses, individuals, governmental entities, and non-profit organizations in Pennsylvania. It offers various deposit products, including checking, savings, money management, and time deposit accounts, as well as demand deposits. The company also provides commercial real estate, construction and land development, commercial and industrial, and residential mortgage loans, as well as installment and revolving loans; consumer loans comprising unsecured personal lines of credit and installment loans; and secured and unsecured commercial and industrial loans, including accounts receivable and inventory financing, and commercial equipment financing. In addition, it offers various investment and trust services comprising estate planning and administration, corporate and personal trust fund management, pension, and profit sharing and other employee benefit funds management services, and custodial services, as well as non-trust related investment services; sells mutual funds, annuities, and insurance products; and offers safe deposit, pension, and fiduciary services. Further, the company engages in non-bank investment activities, such as venture capital investments. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.