Princeton National Bancorp (OTCMKTS:PNBC) versus Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Critical Contrast

Princeton National Bancorp (OTCMKTS:PNBC) and Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Princeton National Bancorp and Southern First Bancshares’ gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Princeton National Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Southern First Bancshares	$87.85 million	3.00	$13.43 million	$1.64	19.69

Southern First Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than Princeton National Bancorp.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

75.0% of Southern First Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 6.6% of Princeton National Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.6% of Southern First Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Princeton National Bancorp and Southern First Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Princeton National Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A
Southern First Bancshares	6.67%	4.41%	0.34%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Princeton National Bancorp and Southern First Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Princeton National Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A
Southern First Bancshares	0	0	1	0	3.00

Southern First Bancshares has a consensus target price of $44.00, indicating a potential upside of 36.27%.

Summary

Southern First Bancshares beats Princeton National Bancorp on 7 of the 7 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Princeton National Bancorp

Princeton National Bancorp, Inc. does not have significant operations. Previously it operated as a holding company for Citizens First National Bank that provided commercial banking and trust services in Illinois. The company was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Princeton, Illinois.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Southern First Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans to the general public in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. The company accepts various deposit products that include checking accounts, commercial checking accounts, and savings accounts, as well as other time deposits, including daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate loans; construction real estate loans; commercial business loans for various lines of businesses, such as the manufacturing, service industry, and professional service areas; consumer real estate and home equity loans; and other consumer loans, including secured and unsecured installment loans and revolving lines of credit. In addition, the company provides other bank services, such as internet banking, cash management, safe deposit boxes, direct deposit, automatic drafts, bill payment, and mobile banking services. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina.