BayFirst Financial (NASDAQ:BAFN – Get Free Report) and BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF – Get Free Report) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation and dividends.
Risk and Volatility
BayFirst Financial has a beta of 0.52, indicating that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BancFirst has a beta of 0.65, indicating that its stock price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Dividends
BayFirst Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. BancFirst pays an annual dividend of $2.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. BayFirst Financial pays out -2.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. BancFirst pays out 28.1% 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. BancFirst has raised its dividend for 31 consecutive years. BayFirst Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Analyst Ratings
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| BayFirst Financial | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 |
| BancFirst | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2.25 |
BancFirst has a consensus price target of $123.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.84%. Given BancFirst’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe BancFirst is more favorable than BayFirst Financial.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares BayFirst Financial and BancFirst”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| BayFirst Financial | $24.02 million | 6.04 | -$22.94 million | ($14.88) | -0.36 |
| BancFirst | $960.40 million | 3.71 | $240.61 million | $7.41 | 14.33 |
BancFirst has higher revenue and earnings than BayFirst Financial. BayFirst Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than BancFirst, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares BayFirst Financial and BancFirst’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| BayFirst Financial | -80.74% | -101.15% | -4.83% |
| BancFirst | 25.61% | 13.44% | 1.70% |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
16.9% of BayFirst Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 51.7% of BancFirst shares are held by institutional investors. 56.6% of BayFirst Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 31.7% of BancFirst shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Summary
BancFirst beats BayFirst Financial on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
About BayFirst Financial
BayFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for BayFirst National Bank that provides community banking services for businesses and individuals. The company offers checking, savings, NOW, and money market deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and individual retirement account; and safety deposit boxes. It also provides commercial real estate mortgages; construction and development, working capital, and business loans; auto, boat, and recreational vehicle loans; and residential mortgages, personal lines of credit, and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers mobile and online banking, treasury management, wire transfers, cash management, merchant processing, remote deposit capture, night depositor, online bill payment, courier, retail investment, ACH originations, and other services. It operates full-service banking centers in St. Petersburg, Seminole, Pinellas Park, Clearwater, Sarasota, Tampa, Belleair Bluffs, and Bradenton, Florida. The company was formerly known as First Home Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to BayFirst Financial Corp. in May 2021. BayFirst Financial Corp. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida.
About BancFirst
BancFirst Corporation operates as the bank holding company for BancFirst that provides a range of commercial banking services to retail customers, and small to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through BancFirst Metropolitan Banks, BancFirst Community Banks, Pegasus, Worthington, and Other Financial Services segments. It offers checking accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, sweep accounts, club accounts, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as overdraft protection and auto draft services. The company also provides commercial and agricultural non-real estate loans for working capital, facilities acquisition or expansion, purchase of equipment, and other needs; lending services that include private banking, energy, commercial and residential real estate, and commercial and industrial loans; and loans to finance purchases of consumer goods, such as automobiles, boats, household goods, vacations, and education. In addition, it engages in the investment management and administration of trusts for individuals, corporations, and employee benefit plans, as well as bond trustee and paying agent business for various Oklahoma municipalities and governmental entities; and provision of item processing, research, and other correspondent banking services to financial institutions and governmental units. Further, the company provides insurance agency services; depository and funds transfer, collection, safe deposit box, cash management, and other services. It serves customers in non-metropolitan trade centers and cities in the metropolitan statistical areas of Oklahoma. The company was formerly known as United Community Corporation and changed its name to BancFirst Corporation in November 1988. BancFirst Corporation was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
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