Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) and Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK) Head-To-Head Survey

Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK) and Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Landmark Bancorp and Provident Financial”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Landmark Bancorp	$95.97 million	1.55	$18.77 million	$3.07	7.98
Provident Financial	$60.15 million	1.71	$6.26 million	$0.99	16.29

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

Dividends

Landmark Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Provident Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Landmark Bancorp pays out 27.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Provident Financial pays out 56.6% 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. Landmark Bancorp has increased its dividend for 6 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares Landmark Bancorp and Provident Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Landmark Bancorp	19.56%	12.61%	1.17%
Provident Financial	10.97%	5.14%	0.53%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

25.7% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.3% of Provident Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 12.8% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 11.5% of Provident Financial shares are held by 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 & Volatility

Landmark Bancorp has a beta of 0.29, suggesting that its stock price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Provident Financial has a beta of 0.32, suggesting that its stock price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Landmark Bancorp and Provident Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Landmark Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
Provident Financial	0	3	0	0	2.00

Provident Financial has a consensus target price of $16.00, indicating a potential downside of 0.78%. Given Provident Financial’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Provident Financial is more favorable than Landmark Bancorp.

Summary

Landmark Bancorp beats Provident Financial on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Landmark Bancorp

Landmark Bancorp, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for Landmark National Bank that provides various financial and banking services to its local communities. It offers non-interest bearing demand, money market, checking, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides one-to-four family residential real estate, construction and land, commercial real estate, commercial, paycheck protection program, municipal, and agriculture loans; and consumer and other loans, such as automobile, boat, and home improvement and home equity loans, as well as insurance, and mobile and online banking services. In addition, the company invests in certain investment and mortgage-related securities. It operates in the eastern, central, southeast, and southwest Kansas. The company was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Manhattan, Kansas.

About Provident Financial

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. operates as the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, F.S.B. that provides community banking services to consumers and small to mid-sized businesses in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits; and loan portfolio consists of single-family, multi-family, commercial real estate, construction, mortgage, commercial business, and consumer loans. It also offers investment services comprising the sale of investment products, such as annuities and mutual funds; and trustee services for real estate transactions. The company operates through full-service banking offices in Riverside County and San Bernardino County. Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in Riverside, California.