Critical Comparison: Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC) vs. First Seacoast Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSEA)

Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC) and First Seacoast Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSEA) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Bank First National and First Seacoast Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Bank First National	29.34%	11.25%	1.60%
First Seacoast Bancorp	-9.05%	-4.02%	-0.42%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Bank First National and First Seacoast Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Bank First National	0	1	2	0	2.67
First Seacoast Bancorp	1	0	0	0	1.00

Bank First National currently has a consensus target price of $146.00, indicating a potential upside of 18.19%. Given Bank First National’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Bank First National is more favorable than First Seacoast Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

Bank First National has a beta of 0.42, indicating that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Seacoast Bancorp has a beta of 0.2, indicating that its share price is 80% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

30.0% of Bank First National shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.4% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 4.1% of Bank First National shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 7.8% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Bank First National and First Seacoast Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Bank First National	$226.09 million	0.81	$65.56 million	$7.11	17.37
First Seacoast Bancorp	$29.33 million	1.86	-$510,000.00	($0.57)	-20.37

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

Summary

Bank First National beats First Seacoast Bancorp on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Bank First National

Bank First Corporation operates as a holding company for Bank First, N.A. that provides consumer and commercial financial services to businesses, professionals, consumers, associations, individuals, and governmental authorities in Wisconsin. It offers checking, savings, money market, cash management, retirement, and health savings accounts; other time deposits; certificates of deposit; and residential mortgage products. The company's loan products include real estate loans, including commercial real estate, residential mortgage, and home equity loans; commercial and industrial loans for working capital, accounts receivable, inventory financing, and other business purposes; construction and development loans; residential 1-4 family loans; and consumer loans for personal and household purposes, including secured and unsecured installment loans, and revolving lines of credit. It also provides credit cards; ATM processing; insurance; data processing and other information technology; investment and safekeeping; treasury management; and online, telephone, and mobile banking services. The company was formerly known as Bank First National Corporation and changed its name to Bank First Corporation in June 2019. Bank First Corporation was founded in 1894 and is headquartered in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

About First Seacoast Bancorp

First Seacoast Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for First Seacoast Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services for individuals and businesses. The company offers interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits. It also provides various lending products comprising one- to four-family residential real estate loans; commercial real estate and multi-family real estate loans; acquisition, development, and land loans; commercial and industrial loans; home equity loans and lines of credit; and consumer loans. In addition, the company offers wealth management services, such as retirement planning, portfolio management, investment and insurance strategies, business retirement plans, and college planning services. The company was founded in 1890 and is headquartered in Dover, New Hampshire. First Seacoast Bancorp, Inc. is a subsidiary of First Seacoast Bancorp, MHC.