Critical Review: University Bancorp (OTCMKTS:UNIB) & First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW)

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) and University Bancorp (OTCMKTS:UNIB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, valuation and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Western Financial and University Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Western Financial	$88.93 million	2.00	$5.22 million	$0.62	29.74
University Bancorp	$105.57 million	0.84	$5.43 million	N/A	N/A

University Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than First Western Financial.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for First Western Financial and University Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Western Financial	0	1	2	0	2.67
University Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

First Western Financial currently has a consensus target price of $23.83, suggesting a potential upside of 29.25%. Given First Western Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe First Western Financial is more favorable than University Bancorp.

Profitability

This table compares First Western Financial and University Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Western Financial	3.33%	2.44%	0.20%
University Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Volatility and Risk

First Western Financial has a beta of 0.68, indicating that its stock price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, University Bancorp has a beta of 0.39, indicating that its stock price is 61% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

60.3% of First Western Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 17.9% of First Western Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 63.7% of University Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

First Western Financial beats University Bancorp on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Western Financial

First Western Financial, Inc., a financial holding company, provides wealth advisory, private baking, personal trust, investment management, mortgage lending, and institutional asset management services. The company operates through two segments: Wealth Management and Mortgage. The Wealth Management segment provides deposit, loan, life insurance, and trust and investment management advisory products and services. The Mortgage segment engages in soliciting, originating, and selling mortgage loans into the secondary market. It serves entrepreneurs, professionals, high net worth individuals or families, and business and philanthropic organizations. First Western Financial, Inc. was incorporated in 2002 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

About University Bancorp

University Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for University Bank that provides various personal, business, and community banking services in the United States. It offers checking, NOW, savings, money market, time deposit, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company's consumer loans include home equity, short term, automobile, personal, and recreational vehicle loans, as well as home equity lines of credits; SBA, commercial real estate, equipment, home improvement, and other instalment loans; and non-profit loans, as well as working capital lines of credit. In addition, the company provides foreign currency exchange; reverse mortgage; online banking and bill pay; online reorder checks; wire transfer; and courier services, as well as credit card and ATM services. Further, it offers life, health, property, and casualty insurance products, as well as investment products, including annuities. University Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1890 and is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.