Analyzing Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU) & Abrdn (OTCMKTS:SLFPY)

Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU) and Abrdn (OTCMKTS:SLFPY) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, risk, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Community Financial System and Abrdn’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Community Financial System	21.26%	11.24%	1.28%
Abrdn	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Community Financial System and Abrdn, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Community Financial System	0	4	1	1	2.50
Abrdn	0	2	0	0	2.00

Community Financial System presently has a consensus target price of $69.75, indicating a potential upside of 9.68%. Given Community Financial System’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Community Financial System is more favorable than Abrdn.

Dividends

Community Financial System pays an annual dividend of $1.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Abrdn pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.5%. Community Financial System pays out 45.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Community Financial System has raised its dividend for 33 consecutive years.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Community Financial System and Abrdn”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Community Financial System	$1.01 billion	3.31	$210.46 million	$4.12	15.44
Abrdn	$1.68 billion	3.21	$526.16 million	N/A	N/A

Abrdn has higher revenue and earnings than Community Financial System.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.8% of Community Financial System shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Community Financial System shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Community Financial System has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Abrdn has a beta of 1.52, indicating that its stock price is 52% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Community Financial System beats Abrdn on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Community Financial System

Community Bank System, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Community Bank, N.A. that provides various banking and other financial services to retail, commercial, institutional, and municipal customers. It operates through three segments: Banking, Employee Benefit Services, and All Other. The company offers various deposits products, such as interest and noninterest -bearing checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits. It also provides loans, including consumer mortgages; general purpose commercial and industrial loans, and mortgages on commercial properties; paycheck protection program loans; installment loans that are originated through selected dealerships and are secured by automobiles, marine, and other recreational vehicles; personal installment loans and check credit lines of credit for consumers; and home equity products. In addition, the company offers broker-dealer and investment advisory; cash management, investment, and treasury services; asset management services; and employee benefit services, as well as operates as a full-service insurance agency that provides personal and commercial lines of insurance, and other risk management products and services. Further, it offers contribution plan administration, employee benefit trust, collective investment fund, retirement plan administration and benefit consulting, fund administration, transfer agency, actuarial and benefit consulting, and health and welfare consulting services; and act as an investor in residential and commercial real estate activities. Additionally, the company offers wealth management, retirement planning, higher educational planning, fiduciary, risk management, trust, and personal financial planning services; and investment alternatives, including stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and insurance and advisory products, as well as master recordkeeping services. Community Bank System, Inc. was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in DeWitt, New York.

About Abrdn

abrdn plc provides asset management services in the United Kingdom, Europe, North America, and Asia. The company offers investment solutions and funds; long-term savings and investment products to individual and corporate customers; and life insurance and savings products. It provides its products through institutional, wholesale, and retail distribution channels. It also makes real estate investments. The company was formerly known as Standard Life Aberdeen plc. abrdn plc was founded in 1825 and is headquartered in Edinburgh, United Kingdom.