Reviewing University Bancorp (OTCMKTS:UNIB) and Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC)

University Bancorp (OTCMKTS:UNIB) and Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, dividends and earnings.

Dividends

University Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Premier Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. Premier Financial pays out 62.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for University Bancorp and Premier Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
University Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00
Premier Financial	0	1	0	0	2.00

Risk and Volatility

University Bancorp has a beta of 0.18, suggesting that its stock price is 82% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Premier Financial has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares University Bancorp and Premier Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
University Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A
Premier Financial	16.12%	7.66%	0.87%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

66.1% of Premier Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 63.7% of University Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.2% of Premier Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares University Bancorp and Premier Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
University Bancorp	$105.57 million	0.77	$5.43 million	N/A	N/A
Premier Financial	$243.59 million	4.13	$71.40 million	$1.99	14.09

Premier Financial has higher revenue and earnings than University Bancorp.

Summary

Premier Financial beats University Bancorp on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About University Bancorp

University Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for University Bank that provides various personal, business, and community banking services in the United States. It offers checking, NOW, savings, money market, time deposit, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company's consumer loans include home equity, short term, automobile, personal, and recreational vehicle loans, as well as home equity lines of credits; SBA, commercial real estate, equipment, home improvement, and other instalment loans; and non-profit loans, as well as working capital lines of credit. In addition, the company provides foreign currency exchange; reverse mortgage; online banking and bill pay; online reorder checks; wire transfer; and courier services, as well as credit card and ATM services. Further, it offers life, health, property, and casualty insurance products, as well as investment products, including annuities. University Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1890 and is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

About Premier Financial

Premier Financial Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides various banking services. It offers demand, checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposits and certificates of deposit account registry service; and investment products. The company also provides residential and commercial real estate, commercial, construction, home improvement and home equity, installment, and consumer loans. In addition, it invests in the U.S. treasury and federal government agency obligations, obligations of states and political subdivisions, mortgage-backed securities that are issued by federal agencies, residential collateralized mortgage obligations, and corporate bonds. Further, the company offers property and casualty, life, and group health insurance agency services; mezzanine funding services; and digital banking services, which include mobile banking, zelle, online bill pay, and online account opening, as well as the MoneyPass ATM network. It operates in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The company was formerly known as First Defiance Financial Corp. and changed its name to Premier Financial Corp. in June 2020. Premier Financial Corp. was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Defiance, Ohio.