1st Colonial Bancorp (OTCMKTS:FCOB) vs. Park National (NYSE:PRK) Financial Comparison

Park National (NYSE:PRK) and 1st Colonial Bancorp (OTCMKTS:FCOB) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Park National and 1st Colonial Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Park National	0	2	0	0	2.00
1st Colonial Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A

Park National currently has a consensus price target of $130.00, indicating a potential downside of 24.59%. Given Park National’s higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Park National is more favorable than 1st Colonial Bancorp.

Volatility and Risk

Park National has a beta of 0.71, suggesting that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, 1st Colonial Bancorp has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its share price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Park National and 1st Colonial Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Park National	22.67%	12.49%	1.44%
1st Colonial Bancorp	16.80%	11.14%	0.92%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Park National and 1st Colonial Bancorp’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Park National	$481.03 million	5.79	$126.73 million	$7.90	21.82
1st Colonial Bancorp	$42.11 million	1.74	$7.43 million	$1.55	9.90

Park National has higher revenue and earnings than 1st Colonial Bancorp. 1st Colonial Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Park National, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

62.7% of Park National shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.4% of 1st Colonial Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Park National shares are owned 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.

Summary

Park National beats 1st Colonial Bancorp on 12 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Park National

Park National Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Park National Bank that provides commercial banking and trust services in small and medium population areas. The company offers deposits for demand, savings, and time accounts; trust and wealth management services; cash management services; safe deposit operations; electronic funds transfers; Internet and mobile banking solutions with bill pay service; credit cards; and various additional banking-related services. It also provides commercial loans, including financing for industrial and commercial properties, financing for equipment, inventory and accounts receivable, acquisition financing, and commercial leasing, as well as for consumer finance companies; commercial real estate loans comprising mortgage loans to developers and owners of commercial real estate; originates financing leases primarily for the purchase of commercial vehicles, operating/manufacturing equipment, and municipal vehicles/equipment; consumer loans, such as automobile loans; consumer finance services; home equity lines of credit; and residential real estate and construction loans, as well as installment loans and commercial loans. In addition, the company offers aircraft financing services; and ParkDirect, a personal banking application. Park National Corporation was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Newark, Ohio.

About 1st Colonial Bancorp

1st Colonial Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for 1st Colonial Community Bank that provides a range of business and consumer financial services in New Jersey. The company offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, club accounts, and business and personal checking accounts. It also provides home equity loans, home equity lines of credit, personal and vehicle loans, residential and commercial mortgages, construction loans, business lines of credit, equipment and vehicle financing, real estate loans, working capital line of credit, and business acquisition loans, as well as small business administration loans. In addition, the company offers cash management services comprising remote deposit capture, ACH/wire transfer, night deposit drop, and merchant services; safe deposit boxes; and coin counting, online and mobile banking, debit card, and ATM services. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.