Contrasting Horizon Bancorp (IN) (NASDAQ:HBNC) and CF Bankshares (NASDAQ:CFBK)

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

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Horizon Bancorp (IN) and CF Bankshares”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	-$31.31 million	-29.88	-$150.48 million	($3.15)	-5.80
CF Bankshares	$123.56 million	1.63	$13.39 million	$2.49	12.69

CF Bankshares has higher revenue and earnings than Horizon Bancorp (IN). Horizon Bancorp (IN) is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CF Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

64.5% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 41.1% of CF Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.8% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 21.0% of CF Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Horizon Bancorp (IN) pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. CF Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Horizon Bancorp (IN) pays out -20.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. CF Bankshares pays out 14.5% 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. CF Bankshares has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Horizon Bancorp (IN) is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Horizon Bancorp (IN) and CF Bankshares, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	2	1	2	0	2.00
CF Bankshares	0	2	1	0	2.33

Horizon Bancorp (IN) presently has a consensus price target of $20.33, indicating a potential upside of 11.32%. CF Bankshares has a consensus price target of $29.00, indicating a potential downside of 8.20%. Given Horizon Bancorp (IN)’s higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Horizon Bancorp (IN) is more favorable than CF Bankshares.

Profitability

This table compares Horizon Bancorp (IN) and CF Bankshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	-37.12%	11.56%	1.17%
CF Bankshares	12.78%	9.23%	0.77%

Risk and Volatility

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

Summary

CF Bankshares beats Horizon Bancorp (IN) on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About CF Bankshares

CF Bankshares Inc. operates as the bank holding company for CFBank, National Association that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts savings, retail and business checking accounts, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It offers single-family mortgage loans; commercial real estate and multi-family residential mortgage loans; commercial loans and equipment leases; residential real estate loans and treasury management depository services; retail banking services and products. In addition, the company offers consumer loans, such as home equity lines of credit, home improvement loans, and loans secured by deposits and purchased loans, as well as other loans. Further, it provides online internet banking, mobile banking, and remote deposits. The company was formerly known as Central Federal Corporation and changed its name to CF Bankshares Inc. in July 2020. CF Bankshares Inc. was founded in 1892 and is based in Columbus, Ohio.