Contrasting Horizon Bancorp (IN) (NASDAQ:HBNC) & Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC)

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

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Bank First National and Horizon Bancorp (IN)”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Bank First National	$243.93 million	6.11	$71.50 million	$7.23	20.96
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	$405.46 million	2.35	-$150.48 million	($3.15)	-5.90

Bank First National has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Horizon Bancorp (IN). Horizon Bancorp (IN) 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.

Risk and Volatility

Bank First National has a beta of 0.42, meaning that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Horizon Bancorp (IN) has a beta of 0.83, meaning that its share price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Bank First National pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Horizon Bancorp (IN) pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Bank First National pays out 24.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Horizon Bancorp (IN) pays out -20.3% 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. Bank First National has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years. Horizon Bancorp (IN) is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Bank First National and Horizon Bancorp (IN)’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Bank First National	29.31%	11.68%	1.66%
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	-37.12%	11.56%	1.17%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Bank First National and Horizon Bancorp (IN), as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Bank First National	0	1	3	1	3.00
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	2	1	2	0	2.00

Bank First National presently has a consensus target price of $150.00, indicating a potential downside of 1.00%. Horizon Bancorp (IN) has a consensus target price of $20.33, indicating a potential upside of 9.44%. Given Horizon Bancorp (IN)’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Horizon Bancorp (IN) is more favorable than Bank First National.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

30.0% of Bank First National shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.5% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.4% of Bank First National shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Bank First National beats Horizon Bancorp (IN) on 12 of the 18 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 Horizon Bancorp (IN)

Horizon Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Horizon Bank that engages in the provision of commercial and retail banking services. The company offers checking, saving, money market, certificate of deposits, individual retirement accounts, and time deposits, as well as non-interest- and interest-bearing demand deposits. It also provides commercial, residential real estate, mortgage, home equity, auto, personal, business, agricultural, and SBA loans, as well as credit cards. In addition, the company offers corporate and individual trust and agency, investment management, and real estate investment trust services; debit cards; treasury management; online and mobile banking; wealth, retirement, and estate and trust services; and sells various insurance products. It operates through full-service offices in northern and central Indiana and southern and central Michigan. Horizon Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in Michigan City, Indiana.