First National (FXNC) Competitors

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

Which has better earnings and valuation, HBT or FXNC?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
HBT Financial	$287.27M	2.78	$71.78M	$2.42	10.46
First National	$92.70M	2.16	$6.97M	$1.00	22.31

Does the media favor HBT or FXNC?

In the previous week, HBT Financial and HBT Financial both had 1 articles in the media. HBT Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.88 beat First National's score of 1.87 indicating that HBT Financial is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
HBT Financial	Very Positive
First National	Very Positive

Is HBT or FXNC a better dividend stock?

HBT Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. First National pays an annual dividend of $0.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. HBT Financial pays out 34.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First National pays out 62.0% 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 and First National has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years. HBT Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Which has more volatility and risk, HBT or FXNC?

HBT Financial has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First National has a beta of 0.52, suggesting that its share price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate HBT or FXNC?

HBT Financial presently has a consensus price target of $28.80, indicating a potential upside of 13.74%. First National has a consensus price target of $28.50, indicating a potential upside of 27.75%. Given First National's higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First National is more favorable than HBT Financial.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
HBT Financial	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.60
First National	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Do institutionals and insiders have more ownership in HBT or FXNC?

78.6% of HBT Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 33.9% of First National shares are owned by institutional investors. 59.8% of HBT Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 14.3% of First National shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Is HBT or FXNC more profitable?

HBT Financial has a net margin of 26.22% compared to First National's net margin of 7.29%. HBT Financial's return on equity of 13.98% beat First National's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
HBT Financial	26.22%	13.98%	1.55%
First National	7.29%	10.88%	0.91%

Summary

HBT Financial beats First National on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.