Contrasting Pathfinder Bancorp (NASDAQ:PBHC) & Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT)

Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT) and Pathfinder Bancorp (NASDAQ:PBHC) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, earnings, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

Stock Yards Bancorp has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pathfinder Bancorp has a beta of 0.23, suggesting that its stock price is 77% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Stock Yards Bancorp and Pathfinder Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Stock Yards Bancorp	$338.25 million	6.23	$107.75 million	$3.64	19.67
Pathfinder Bancorp	$44.74 million	1.85	$9.29 million	$0.32	54.69

Stock Yards Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Pathfinder Bancorp. Stock Yards Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Pathfinder Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Stock Yards Bancorp and Pathfinder Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Stock Yards Bancorp	21.62%	12.00%	1.29%
Pathfinder Bancorp	2.42%	1.65%	0.14%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

56.5% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 26.7% of Pathfinder Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.9% of Stock Yards Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.4% of Pathfinder Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Stock Yards Bancorp and Pathfinder Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Stock Yards Bancorp	0	4	0	0	2.00
Pathfinder Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

Stock Yards Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $69.25, suggesting a potential downside of 3.30%. Given Stock Yards Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Stock Yards Bancorp is more favorable than Pathfinder Bancorp.

Dividends

Stock Yards Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Pathfinder Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Stock Yards Bancorp pays out 34.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Pathfinder Bancorp pays out 125.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Stock Yards Bancorp has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years.

Summary

Stock Yards Bancorp beats Pathfinder Bancorp on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Stock Yards Bancorp

Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. operates as a holding company for Stock Yards Bank & Trust Company that provides various financial services for individuals, corporations, and others in the United States. It operates in two segments, Commercial Banking, and WM&T. The Commercial Banking segment offers a range of loan and deposit products to individual consumers and businesses in all its markets through retail lending, mortgage banking, deposit services, online banking, mobile banking, private banking, commercial lending, commercial real estate lending, leasing, treasury management services, merchant services, international banking, correspondent banking, and other banking services. This segment also provides securities brokerage services through an arrangement with a third party broker-dealer. The WM&T segment provides investment management, financial and retirement planning, and trust and estate services, as well as retirement plan management for businesses and corporations. It provides services in Louisville, central, eastern, and northern Kentucky, as well as Indianapolis, Indiana and Cincinnati, Ohio metropolitan markets. The company was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.

About Pathfinder Bancorp

Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for Pathfinder Bank that provides various banking and financial products and services in New York. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts; certificates of deposit; and demand and time deposits. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate, commercial, residential real estate, construction, and tax-exempt loans; home equity loans and junior liens; and consumer loans comprising automobile, recreational vehicles, and unsecured personal loans, as well as unsecured lines of credit and loans secured by deposit accounts. The company is also involved in the property, casualty, and life insurance brokerage business. It primarily serves individuals, families, small to mid-size businesses, and municipalities. The company was founded in 1859 and is headquartered in Oswego, New York.