Contrasting First National Bank Alaska (OTCMKTS:FBAK) and Plumas Bancorp (NASDAQ:PLBC)

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

41.7% of Plumas Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 9.0% of Plumas Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Plumas Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. First National Bank Alaska pays an annual dividend of $16.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.3%. Plumas Bancorp pays out 28.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First National Bank Alaska pays out 65.5% 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. Plumas Bancorp has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Volatility & Risk

Plumas Bancorp has a beta of 0.6, meaning that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First National Bank Alaska has a beta of 0.18, meaning that its stock price is 82% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Plumas Bancorp	$93.11 million	3.35	$28.62 million	$4.27	10.51
First National Bank Alaska	$87.73 million	N/A	$67.05 million	$24.44	12.29

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

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Plumas Bancorp	25.80%	15.30%	1.73%
First National Bank Alaska	29.11%	14.98%	1.55%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Plumas Bancorp and First National Bank Alaska, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Plumas Bancorp	0	0	3	0	3.00
First National Bank Alaska	0	0	0	0	0.00

Plumas Bancorp presently has a consensus target price of $55.50, suggesting a potential upside of 23.69%. Given Plumas Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Plumas Bancorp is more favorable than First National Bank Alaska.

Summary

Plumas Bancorp beats First National Bank Alaska on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Plumas Bancorp

Plumas Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for the Plumas Bank that provides various banking products and services for small and middle market businesses, and individuals in Northeastern California and Northwestern Nevada. The company accepts various deposits, such as checking, money market checking, business sweep, public funds sweep, savings, time deposit, and retirement accounts. Its loan portfolio comprises of term real estate, commercial, and industrial term loans; government-guaranteed and agricultural loans, as well as credit lines; consumer, automobile, and home equity loans; land development and construction loans; and small business administration loans. In addition, the company provides remote deposit, telephone and mobile banking, internet banking with bill-pay options, cashier's check, bank-by-mail, automated teller machine, night depository, safe deposit box, direct deposit, electronic funds transfer, and other customary banking services. Plumas Bancorp was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Reno, Nevada.

About First National Bank Alaska

First National Bank Alaska, a commercial bank, provides various banking products and services for business, industry, and individual customers primarily in Alaska. The company offers savings and checking accounts; money market deposits; safe deposit services; certificates of deposit; individual retirement accounts; and personal, home equity, and construction loans, as well as loans for stability and growth. It also provides investment, treasury, trust, and wealth management services; and escrow and contract collection, and bankcard services. In addition, the company offers debit and credit cards, online and mobile banking, fraud prevention, and convenience banking services. First National Bank Alaska was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska.