Critical Analysis: Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) vs. First Northern Community Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNRN)

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and First Northern Community Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNRN) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Hancock Whitney and First Northern Community Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hancock Whitney	$2.02 billion	3.01	$486.07 million	$5.10	14.89
First Northern Community Bancorp	$88.40 million	3.22	$21.13 million	$1.35	12.87

Hancock Whitney has higher revenue and earnings than First Northern Community Bancorp. First Northern Community Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hancock Whitney, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Hancock Whitney and First Northern Community Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hancock Whitney	0	3	7	1	2.82
First Northern Community Bancorp	0	0	1	0	3.00

Hancock Whitney currently has a consensus price target of $83.78, indicating a potential upside of 10.34%. Given Hancock Whitney’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Hancock Whitney is more favorable than First Northern Community Bancorp.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

81.2% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 17.9% of First Northern Community Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.9% of First Northern Community Bancorp shares are held 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.

Profitability

This table compares Hancock Whitney and First Northern Community Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hancock Whitney	21.81%	11.36%	1.41%
First Northern Community Bancorp	24.97%	10.68%	1.18%

Summary

Hancock Whitney beats First Northern Community Bancorp on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation operates as the financial holding company for Hancock Whitney Bank that provides traditional and online banking services to commercial, small business, and retail customers. It offers various transaction and savings deposit products consisting of brokered deposits, time deposits, and money market accounts; treasury management services, secured and unsecured loan products including revolving credit facilities, and letters of credit and similar financial guarantees; and trust and investment management services to retirement plans, corporations, and individuals, and investment advisory and brokerage products. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans including real and non-real estate loans; construction and land development loans; and residential mortgages, as well as consumer loans. In addition, it offers commercial finance products to middle market and corporate clients, including leases and related structures; facilitates investments in new market tax credit activities and holding certain foreclosed assets; provides customers access to fixed annuity and life insurance products; and underwriting transactions products, as well as debt and mortgage-related securities. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi.

About First Northern Community Bancorp

First Northern Community Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Northern Bank of Dixon that provides commercial banking products and services to individuals, and small to medium sized businesses. The company accepts demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction deposits, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits. Its loan portfolio comprises of commercial, commercial real estate, agriculture, residential mortgage, residential construction, and consumer loans. The company also offers credit cards; investment and brokerage services; alternative investment products, and fiduciary and other financial services; and equipment leasing, merchant card processing, payroll, and international banking services through third parties. In addition, it provides issues cashier’s checks, safe deposit boxes rental, and other customary banking services. The company operates eleven full-service branches located in the cities of Auburn, Davis, Dixon, Fairfield, Rancho Cordova, Roseville, Sacramento, Vacaville, West Sacramento, Winters, and Woodland; a satellite banking office inside a retirement community in the city of Davis; a residential mortgage loan office in Davis; and a commercial loan office in the Contra Costa County city of Walnut Creek. First Northern Community Bancorp was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Dixon, California.