Reviewing Flagstar Bank, National Association (NYSE:FLG) and Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF)

Flagstar Bank, National Association (NYSE:FLG) and Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and risk.

Risk and Volatility

Flagstar Bank, National Association has a beta of 1.01, indicating that its share price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Franklin Financial Services has a beta of -0.02, indicating that its share price is 102% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Flagstar Bank, National Association pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Franklin Financial Services pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Flagstar Bank, National Association pays out -18.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Franklin Financial Services pays out 25.5% 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. Franklin Financial Services has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Franklin Financial Services is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Flagstar Bank, National Association and Franklin Financial Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Flagstar Bank, National Association	1.08%	0.98%	0.08%
Franklin Financial Services	18.20%	14.21%	1.08%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Flagstar Bank, National Association and Franklin Financial Services”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Flagstar Bank, National Association	$4.81 billion	1.19	-$177.00 million	($0.22)	-62.50
Franklin Financial Services	$133.55 million	2.12	$21.23 million	$5.34	11.82

Franklin Financial Services has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Flagstar Bank, National Association. Flagstar Bank, National Association is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Franklin Financial Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

67.9% of Flagstar Bank, National Association shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 24.8% of Franklin Financial Services shares are held by institutional investors. 21.4% of Flagstar Bank, National Association shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.9% of Franklin Financial Services shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Flagstar Bank, National Association and Franklin Financial Services, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Flagstar Bank, National Association	1	3	9	0	2.62
Franklin Financial Services	0	1	1	0	2.50

Flagstar Bank, National Association presently has a consensus target price of $16.79, suggesting a potential upside of 22.12%. Franklin Financial Services has a consensus target price of $64.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.43%. Given Flagstar Bank, National Association’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Flagstar Bank, National Association is more favorable than Franklin Financial Services.

Summary

Flagstar Bank, National Association beats Franklin Financial Services on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Flagstar Bank, National Association

Flagstar Financial, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Flagstar Bank, N.A. that provides banking products and services in the United States. The company’s deposit products include interest-bearing checking and money market, savings, non-interest-bearing, and retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. Its loan products comprise multi-family loans; commercial real estate loans; acquisition, development, and construction loans; commercial and industrial loans; one-to-four family loans; specialty finance loans and leases; warehouse loans; and other loans, such as home equity lines of credit, boat and recreational vehicle indirect lending, point of sale consumer loans, and other consumer loans, including overdraft loans. The company offers cash management products; non-deposit investment and insurance products; and online banking, mobile banking, and bank-by-phone services. It primarily serves individuals, small and mid-size businesses, and professional associations. The company was formerly known as New York Community Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to Flagstar Financial, Inc. in October 2024. Flagstar Financial, Inc. was founded in 1859 and is headquartered in Hicksville, New York.

About Franklin Financial Services

Franklin Financial Services Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Farmers and Merchants Trust Company of Chambersburg that provides commercial, retail banking, and trust services to businesses, individuals, governmental entities, and non-profit organizations in Pennsylvania. It offers various deposit products, including checking, savings, money management, and time deposit accounts, as well as demand deposits. The company also provides commercial real estate, construction and land development, commercial and industrial, and residential mortgage loans, as well as installment and revolving loans; consumer loans comprising unsecured personal lines of credit and installment loans; and secured and unsecured commercial and industrial loans, including accounts receivable and inventory financing, and commercial equipment financing. In addition, it offers various investment and trust services comprising estate planning and administration, corporate and personal trust fund management, pension, and profit sharing and other employee benefit funds management services, and custodial services, as well as non-trust related investment services; sells mutual funds, annuities, and insurance products; and offers safe deposit, pension, and fiduciary services. Further, the company engages in non-bank investment activities, such as venture capital investments. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.