Head-To-Head Comparison: First Seacoast Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSEA) & Horizon Bancorp (IN) (NASDAQ:HBNC)

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

64.5% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.4% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Horizon Bancorp (IN) shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.8% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are owned 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.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Horizon Bancorp (IN) and First Seacoast Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	0	3	2	0	2.40
First Seacoast Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00

Horizon Bancorp (IN) presently has a consensus price target of $21.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.25%. Given Horizon Bancorp (IN)’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Horizon Bancorp (IN) is more favorable than First Seacoast Bancorp.

Valuation and Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	$405.46 million	2.48	-$150.48 million	($3.18)	-6.16
First Seacoast Bancorp	$28.74 million	2.75	-$850,000.00	($0.22)	-76.59

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

Volatility and Risk

Horizon Bancorp (IN) has a beta of 0.82, meaning that its share price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Seacoast Bancorp has a beta of 0.16, meaning that its share price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Horizon Bancorp (IN)	-37.28%	12.41%	1.29%
First Seacoast Bancorp	-2.60%	-1.20%	-0.12%

Summary

Horizon Bancorp (IN) beats First Seacoast Bancorp on 9 of the 14 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 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.