Comparing Sound Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ:SFBC) and Landmark Bancorp (NASDAQ:LARK)

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

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sound Financial Bancorp	13.88%	7.82%	0.79%
Landmark Bancorp	21.19%	12.68%	1.29%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Sound Financial Bancorp and Landmark Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sound Financial Bancorp	$61.52 million	1.90	$7.16 million	$3.36	13.51
Landmark Bancorp	$95.97 million	2.05	$18.77 million	$3.37	9.59

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

Dividends

Sound Financial Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Landmark Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Sound Financial Bancorp pays out 25.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Landmark Bancorp pays out 24.9% 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. Sound Financial Bancorp has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Landmark Bancorp has raised its dividend for 6 consecutive years. Landmark Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Volatility & Risk

Sound Financial Bancorp has a beta of 0.05, suggesting that its share price is 95% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Landmark Bancorp has a beta of 0.39, suggesting that its share price is 61% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for Sound Financial Bancorp and Landmark Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sound Financial Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
Landmark Bancorp	0	1	0	1	3.00

Insider & Institutional Ownership

68.8% of Sound Financial Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.7% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 12.3% of Sound Financial Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 9.8% of Landmark Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Landmark Bancorp beats Sound Financial Bancorp on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Sound Financial Bancorp

Sound Financial Bancorp, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Through its principal subsidiary, Sound Community Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations in the Puget Sound region. Sound Community Bank offers deposit products, including checking, savings, money market and certificate accounts, along with residential mortgage, commercial real estate, construction, commercial and industrial, consumer and small-business loans.

About Landmark Bancorp

Landmark Bancorp, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Manhattan, Kansas. Through its principal subsidiary, Landmark National Bank, the company provides community banking services to individuals, families, farmers, and businesses. Landmark National Bank offers a range of financial products, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer loans, residential and commercial real estate loans, agricultural lending, and business financing. The bank also provides online and mobile banking, treasury management, wealth management, and other services designed to support personal and commercial financial needs.