Contrasting First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) & Dacotah Banks (OTCMKTS:DBIN)

Dacotah Banks (OTCMKTS:DBIN) and First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and valuation.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

72.7% of First Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of First Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Dacotah Banks has a beta of 0.38, suggesting that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Financial has a beta of 0.47, suggesting that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Dacotah Banks pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. First Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Dacotah Banks pays out 26.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Financial pays out 41.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Dacotah Banks and First Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Dacotah Banks	0	0	0	0	N/A
First Financial	0	1	0	0	2.00

First Financial has a consensus target price of $45.00, suggesting a potential upside of 2.48%. Given First Financial’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Financial is more favorable than Dacotah Banks.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Dacotah Banks and First Financial”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Dacotah Banks	$199.04 million	1.80	$26.17 million	$2.25	14.22
First Financial	$271.10 million	1.91	$60.67 million	$4.32	10.16

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

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Dacotah Banks	11.08%	N/A	N/A
First Financial	18.22%	9.95%	1.05%

Summary

First Financial beats Dacotah Banks on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Dacotah Banks

Dacotah Banks, Inc. provides various banking and financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company provides demand and certificates of deposit; checking, individual retirement, health savings, and money market accounts; and commercial, commercial real estate, residential mortgage, and consumer loans. It also offers vehicle, boat, motorhome, mortgage, camper, motorcycle, snowmobile, jet SKI, and ATV loans; and unsecured, overdraft protection, and student loans; business, term, and small business administration loans, and other loans. In addition, the company provides credit, debit, and gift cards; mobile and online banking; auto, homeowner, health, and life insurance products; and estate, and trust services. Further, the company offers retirement planning, investment management, foundation, endowment, bill paying, charitable giving, and elder care services, as well as cash management services. Additionally, it provides offers operating lines of credit, state and federal programs, and equipment loans and leases. It also provides crop, homeowner, health, life, farm, and ranch insurance services; and farm and ranch management services. The company operates across various locations in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Dacotah Banks, Inc. was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Aberdeen, South Dakota.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans. In addition, the company offers lease financing, trust account, depositor, and insurance services. The company was founded in 1834 and is headquartered in Terre Haute, Indiana.