Provident Bancorp (NASDAQ:PVBC – Get Rating) and William Penn Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WMPN – Get Rating) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation and institutional ownership.
Profitability
This table compares Provident Bancorp and William Penn Bancorporation’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Provident Bancorp | -28.19% | -11.54% | -1.44% |
| William Penn Bancorporation | 10.89% | 1.90% | 0.40% |
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Provident Bancorp and William Penn Bancorporation, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Provident Bancorp | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| William Penn Bancorporation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
48.0% of Provident Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 21.3% of William Penn Bancorporation shares are held by institutional investors. 5.8% of Provident Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.2% of William Penn Bancorporation shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Provident Bancorp and William Penn Bancorporation’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Provident Bancorp | $78.74 million | 1.87 | -$21.47 million | ($1.53) | -5.43 |
| William Penn Bancorporation | $27.57 million | 4.55 | $4.24 million | $0.25 | 39.20 |
William Penn Bancorporation has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Provident Bancorp. Provident Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than William Penn Bancorporation, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Dividends
Provident Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. William Penn Bancorporation pays an annual dividend of $0.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Provident Bancorp pays out -2.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. William Penn Bancorporation pays out 48.0% 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. William Penn Bancorporation has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years. William Penn Bancorporation is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Risk & Volatility
Provident Bancorp has a beta of 0.68, meaning that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, William Penn Bancorporation has a beta of -0.05, meaning that its share price is 105% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
William Penn Bancorporation beats Provident Bancorp on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Provident Bancorp
Provident Bancorp, Inc. is a Maryland corporation that was formed in 2019 to be the successor corporation to Provident Bancorp, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation, and the holding company for The Provident Bank. The Provident Bank, a subsidiary of Provident Bancorp, Inc. is an innovative, commercial bank that finds solutions for its business and private clients.
About William Penn Bancorporation
William Penn Bank is a bank that offers banking and financial services to individuals and businesses. They offer a variety of products like remote deposit, ACH, positive pay, and more to help businesses.
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