Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) versus NB Bancorp (NASDAQ:NBBK) Head-To-Head Review

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) and NB Bancorp (NASDAQ:NBBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability and earnings.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of NB Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Heritage Financial and NB Bancorp’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Heritage Financial	$243.82 million	2.58	$61.76 million	$1.75	10.35
NB Bancorp	$236.08 million	2.51	$9.82 million	N/A	N/A

Heritage Financial has higher revenue and earnings than NB Bancorp.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Heritage Financial and NB Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Heritage Financial	0	2	1	0	2.33
NB Bancorp	0	0	1	0	3.00

Heritage Financial presently has a consensus target price of $22.25, suggesting a potential upside of 22.79%. NB Bancorp has a consensus target price of $17.00, suggesting a potential upside of 22.39%. Given Heritage Financial’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Heritage Financial is more favorable than NB Bancorp.

Profitability

This table compares Heritage Financial and NB Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Heritage Financial	20.37%	8.66%	1.00%
NB Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Heritage Financial beats NB Bancorp on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Heritage Financial

Heritage Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank that provides various financial services to small and medium sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as noninterest demand deposits, interest bearing demand deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, personal checking accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company's loan portfolio includes commercial and industrial loans, owner-occupied and non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans, one-to-four family residential loans, real estate construction and land development loans, consumer loans, commercial business loans, lines of credit, term equipment financing, and term real estate loans, as well as commercial business loans to a range of businesses in industries that include real estate and rental and leasing, healthcare, accommodation and food services, retail trade, and construction. It also originates loans that are guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration; and provides objective advice from trusted advisers. The company was formerly known as Heritage Financial Corporation, M.H.C. and changed its name to Heritage Financial Corporation in 1998. Heritage Financial Corporation was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Olympia, Washington.

About NB Bancorp

NB Bancorp, Inc. focuses on operating as a bank holding company for Needham Bank that provides various banking products and services in Greater Boston metropolitan area and surrounding communities in Massachusetts, eastern Connecticut, southern New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. The company offers various deposits, including certificate of deposit, individual retirement, money market, savings, NOW, demand deposit, and interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking accounts; and commercial real estate and multifamily, one- to four-family residential real estate, construction and land development, commercial and industrial, and consumer loans, as well as home equity loans and lines of credit. It also invests in securities consisting of U.S. treasury and federal agency securities, government-sponsored residential mortgage-backed securities, municipal bonds, and corporate bonds. The company was founded in 1892 and is based in Needham, Massachusetts.