Financial Survey: Kearny Financial (NASDAQ:KRNY) & First Niles Financial (OTCMKTS:FNFI)

Kearny Financial (NASDAQ:KRNY) and First Niles Financial (OTCMKTS:FNFI) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, earnings and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Kearny Financial and First Niles Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kearny Financial	0	1	1	0	2.50
First Niles Financial	0	0	0	0	0.00

Kearny Financial currently has a consensus price target of $7.75, indicating a potential upside of 10.71%. Given Kearny Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Kearny Financial is more favorable than First Niles Financial.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Kearny Financial and First Niles Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kearny Financial	$326.88 million	1.38	-$86.67 million	($1.13)	-6.19
First Niles Financial	$10.31 million	0.89	$810,000.00	N/A	N/A

First Niles Financial has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Kearny Financial.

Risk & Volatility

Kearny Financial has a beta of 0.81, meaning that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Niles Financial has a beta of 0.37, meaning that its stock price is 63% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Kearny Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.3%. First Niles Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Kearny Financial pays out -38.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

71.0% of Kearny Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.6% of Kearny Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 23.4% of First Niles Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Kearny Financial and First Niles Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kearny Financial	-20.05%	3.31%	0.33%
First Niles Financial	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Kearny Financial beats First Niles Financial on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Kearny Financial

Kearny Financial Corp. operates as the holding company for Kearny Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. It offers various deposit products, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company also provides various loans, such as multi-family and nonresidential real estate mortgage loans, commercial term loans and lines of credit, one- to four-family residential mortgage loans, and home equity loans and lines of credit; loans to individuals, builders, or developers for the construction of multi-family residential buildings or commercial real estate, or for the construction or renovation of one- to four-family residences; overdraft lines of credit; and personal loans. In addition, it engages in the investment activities. Kearny Financial Corp. was founded in 1884 and is headquartered in Fairfield, New Jersey.

About First Niles Financial

First Niles Financial, Inc. operates as a holding company for the Home Federal Savings and Loan Association of Niles that provides various banking products and services in Ohio, the United States. The company offers personal and business checking and savings, money market deposit, and Christmas club accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also provides various loans, including mortgage and consumer loans, home equity lines of credit, and commercial loans and lines of credit. In addition, the company provides e-statement, and night depository services; debit and ATM cards; safe deposit boxes; direct deposits; I.R.A. certificates of deposit and savings accounts; and online banking services. First Niles Financial, Inc. was founded in 1897 and is based in Niles, Ohio.