Bay National (OTCMKTS:BAYN) versus First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Head-To-Head Comparison

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) and Bay National (OTCMKTS:BAYN) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

72.6% of First Commonwealth Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 2.0% of First Commonwealth Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 17.8% of Bay National shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Commonwealth Financial and Bay National’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Commonwealth Financial	$478.94 million	3.47	$157.06 million	$1.61	10.09
Bay National	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

First Commonwealth Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Bay National.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for First Commonwealth Financial and Bay National, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Commonwealth Financial	0	3	2	0	2.40
Bay National	0	0	0	0	N/A

First Commonwealth Financial currently has a consensus target price of $17.50, suggesting a potential upside of 7.69%. Given First Commonwealth Financial’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe First Commonwealth Financial is more favorable than Bay National.

Volatility and Risk

First Commonwealth Financial has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bay National has a beta of 1.56, indicating that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares First Commonwealth Financial and Bay National’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Commonwealth Financial	23.39%	12.14%	1.38%
Bay National	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

First Commonwealth Financial beats Bay National on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Commonwealth Financial

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various consumer and commercial banking services in the United States. Its consumer services include personal checking accounts, interest-earning checking accounts, savings and health savings accounts, insured money market accounts, debit cards, investment certificates, fixed and variable rate certificates of deposit, mortgage loans, secured and unsecured installment loans, construction and real estate loans, safe deposit facilities, credit cards, credit lines with overdraft checking protection, IRA accounts, and automated teller machine (atm) services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services. The company's commercial banking services comprise commercial lending, business checking accounts, online account management services, payroll direct deposits, commercial cash management services, and repurchase agreements, as well as ACH origination services. In addition, it offers various trust and asset management services; auto, home, and business insurance, as well as term life insurance; and annuities, mutual funds, and stock and bond brokerage services through a broker-dealer and insurance brokers. The company was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania.

About Bay National

Bay National Corp. operates as a bank holding company. It offers loans, deposits, investments and other banking and financial services through its subsidiary, Bay National Bank. The company was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Lutherville, MD.