Southside Bancshares (NYSE:SBSI) vs. Ponce Financial Group (NASDAQ:PDLB) Head-To-Head Comparison

Ponce Financial Group (NASDAQ:PDLB) and Southside Bancshares (NYSE:SBSI) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and risk.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Ponce Financial Group and Southside Bancshares”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ponce Financial Group	$194.94 million	2.50	$28.70 million	$1.40	14.41
Southside Bancshares	$419.03 million	2.17	$69.18 million	$2.54	12.03

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

Volatility and Risk

Ponce Financial Group has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Southside Bancshares has a beta of 0.61, suggesting that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

64.3% of Ponce Financial Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 55.7% of Southside Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.2% of Ponce Financial Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.1% of Southside Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Ponce Financial Group and Southside Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ponce Financial Group	16.51%	10.52%	1.02%
Southside Bancshares	16.70%	11.16%	1.11%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Ponce Financial Group and Southside Bancshares, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ponce Financial Group	0	1	0	2	3.33
Southside Bancshares	0	6	0	0	2.00

Ponce Financial Group presently has a consensus price target of $24.00, suggesting a potential upside of 18.93%. Southside Bancshares has a consensus price target of $34.75, suggesting a potential upside of 13.75%. Given Ponce Financial Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ponce Financial Group is more favorable than Southside Bancshares.

Summary

Ponce Financial Group beats Southside Bancshares on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ponce Financial Group

Ponce Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Ponce Bank that provides various banking products and services. It offers various deposit products, including demand accounts, NOW/IOLA, money market, reciprocal deposits, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit to individuals, business entities, and non-profit organizations, as well as individual retirement accounts. The company also provides real estate-secured loans, which includes one-to-four family investor-owned and owner-occupied residential; multifamily residential; nonresidential property; construction and land; commercial and industrial; and business and consumer loans, as well as lines of credit. In addition, it invests in securities, which consist of U.S. Government and federal agency securities and securities issued by government-sponsored or owned enterprises, as well as corporate securities, mortgage-backed securities, and Federal Home Loan Bank stock. Ponce Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1960 and is headquartered in Bronx, New York.

About Southside Bancshares

Southside Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Southside Bank that provides a range of financial services to individuals, businesses, municipal entities, and nonprofit organizations. Its deposit products include savings, money market, and interest and noninterest bearing checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company’s loan portfolio comprises consumer loans that include 1-4 family residential loans, home equity loans, home improvement loans, automobile loans, and other consumer related loans; commercial loans, such as short-term working capital loans for inventory and accounts receivable, short and medium-term loans for equipment or other business capital expansion, commercial real estate loans, and municipal loans; and construction loans for 1-4 family residential and commercial real estate. It also offers wealth management and trust services consisting of investment management, administration, revocable and testamentary trusts, and custodian services for individuals, partnerships, and corporations; safe deposit services; and brokerage services. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated through 56 banking facilities and 73 ATMs/ITMs. Southside Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 1960 and is headquartered in Tyler, Texas.