Analyzing HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) & California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL)

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) and HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

55.4% of California BanCorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.5% of HBT Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 8.1% of California BanCorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 51.9% of HBT Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares California BanCorp and HBT Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
California BanCorp	26.01%	10.44%	1.49%
HBT Financial	23.44%	13.46%	1.55%

Dividends

California BanCorp pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. HBT Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. California BanCorp pays out 21.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. HBT Financial pays out 42.9% 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. HBT Financial has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years. HBT Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares California BanCorp and HBT Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
California BanCorp	$237.07 million	2.96	$63.06 million	$1.84	11.85
HBT Financial	$293.97 million	4.46	$77.01 million	$2.33	15.45

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for California BanCorp and HBT Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
California BanCorp	0	1	5	0	2.83
HBT Financial	0	3	4	0	2.57

California BanCorp presently has a consensus target price of $24.50, indicating a potential upside of 12.39%. HBT Financial has a consensus target price of $37.40, indicating a potential upside of 3.86%. Given California BanCorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe California BanCorp is more favorable than HBT Financial.

Risk & Volatility

California BanCorp has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HBT Financial has a beta of 0.51, meaning that its share price is 49% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

HBT Financial beats California BanCorp on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About California BanCorp

Southern California Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Southern California, N.A. that provides various financial products to individuals, professionals, and small-to medium-sized businesses. The company offers checking, personal and business savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also provides home equity lines of credit, business loans and lines of credit, commercial real estate and construction loans, small business administration loans, letters of credit, and personal and business credit cards. In addition, the company provides cash vault, sweep accounts, and remote deposit capture services; online and mobile banking services; courier service; lockbox services; and merchant services. It operates branches in San Diego, Orange, Ventura, Los Angeles, and Riverside counties, as well as the Inland Empire. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About HBT Financial

HBT Financial, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts. Its loan offering comprises owner and non-owner occupied commercial real estate; construction and land development and multi-family; commercial and industrial; agricultural and farmland; and one-to-four family residential loans, as well as municipal, consumer, and other loans. The company also offers wealth management services, including financial planning to consumers, trusts, and estates; trustee and custodial; investment management; corporate retirement plan consulting and administration; and retail brokerage services. In addition, it provides farmland management, and farmland sales and services; commercial checking accounts; and treasury management services, as well as originates and sells residential mortgage loans. Further, the company offers digital banking services, such as online and mobile banking, and digital payment services, as well as personal financial management tools. The company was formerly known as Heartland Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to HBT Financial, Inc. in September 2019. HBT Financial, Inc. was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Bloomington, Illinois.