Critical Contrast: Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) and First Seacoast Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSEA)

First Seacoast Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSEA) and Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, profitability and institutional ownership.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Seacoast Bancorp and Brookline Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Seacoast Bancorp	$8.74 million	5.39	-$10.66 million	($1.89)	-5.31
Brookline Bancorp	$355.54 million	2.96	$75.00 million	$0.83	14.22

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for First Seacoast Bancorp and Brookline Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Seacoast Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00
Brookline Bancorp	0	1	1	1	3.00

Brookline Bancorp has a consensus price target of $14.17, indicating a potential upside of 20.06%. Given Brookline Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Brookline Bancorp is more favorable than First Seacoast Bancorp.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

38.4% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.9% of Brookline Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 4.7% of First Seacoast Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.6% of Brookline Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

First Seacoast Bancorp has a beta of 0.45, indicating that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Brookline Bancorp has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares First Seacoast Bancorp and Brookline Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Seacoast Bancorp	-35.93%	-13.41%	-1.49%
Brookline Bancorp	11.40%	6.20%	0.65%

Summary

Brookline Bancorp beats First Seacoast Bancorp on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Seacoast Bancorp

First Seacoast Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for First Seacoast Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services for individuals and businesses. The company offers interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits. It also provides various lending products comprising one- to four-family residential real estate loans; commercial real estate and multi-family real estate loans; acquisition, development, and land loans; commercial and industrial loans; home equity loans and lines of credit; and consumer loans. In addition, the company offers wealth management services, such as retirement planning, portfolio management, investment and insurance strategies, business retirement plans, and college planning services. The company was founded in 1890 and is headquartered in Dover, New Hampshire. First Seacoast Bancorp, Inc. is a subsidiary of First Seacoast Bancorp, MHC.

About Brookline Bancorp

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans. It provides credit, term loans, letters of credit, foreign exchange, cash management, consumer and residential loans, wealth and investment advisory, and online and mobile banking services, as well as invests in debt and equity securities. The company was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.