Critical Comparison: United Bancorp (NASDAQ:UBCP) versus Chester Bancorp (OTCMKTS:CNBA)

United Bancorp (NASDAQ:UBCP) and Chester Bancorp (OTCMKTS:CNBA) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares United Bancorp and Chester Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Bancorp	$47.51 million	1.97	$7.75 million	$1.34	12.14
Chester Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

United Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Chester Bancorp.

Profitability

This table compares United Bancorp and Chester Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Bancorp	16.32%	12.05%	0.91%
Chester Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

United Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.77 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. Chester Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 19.2%. United Bancorp pays out 57.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. United Bancorp has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for United Bancorp and Chester Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
Chester Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

Volatility and Risk

United Bancorp has a beta of 0.36, suggesting that its share price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Chester Bancorp has a beta of -0.51, suggesting that its share price is 151% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

15.4% of United Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.9% of United Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 38.8% of Chester Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

United Bancorp beats Chester Bancorp on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Bancorp

United Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Unified Bank that provides commercial and retail banking services in Ohio. The company provides range of banking and financial services, which includes accepting demand, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial, real estate and consumer loans. United Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Martins Ferry, Ohio.

About Chester Bancorp

Chester Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Chester National Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals and businesses in Chester, Illinois. It offers checking accounts, such as regular checking, student checking, golden checking, and club checking accounts; savings accounts, including statement savings, Christmas club, and money market accounts; and certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts. The company also provides loans comprising mortgage, construction, lot, home equity, consumer, and business loans; and reorder check services. It operates two full service offices in Sparta, Illinois; and Perryville, Missouri. Chester Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is based in Chester, Illinois.