Analyzing TrustCo Bank Corp NY (NASDAQ:TRST) and Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK)

TrustCo Bank Corp NY (NASDAQ:TRST) and Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for TrustCo Bank Corp NY and Columbia Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
TrustCo Bank Corp NY	0	0	0	1	4.00
Columbia Financial	0	0	4	0	3.00

Columbia Financial has a consensus price target of $15.10, suggesting a potential upside of 35.30%. Given Columbia Financial’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Columbia Financial is more favorable than TrustCo Bank Corp NY.

Risk & Volatility

TrustCo Bank Corp NY has a beta of 0.65, indicating that its stock price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Columbia Financial has a beta of 0.27, indicating that its stock price is 73% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

TrustCo Bank Corp NY pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Columbia Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. TrustCo Bank Corp NY pays out 42.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Columbia Financial pays out 69.0% 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. TrustCo Bank Corp NY is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

68.6% of TrustCo Bank Corp NY shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 12.7% of Columbia Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 3.4% of TrustCo Bank Corp NY shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.5% of Columbia Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares TrustCo Bank Corp NY and Columbia Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
TrustCo Bank Corp NY	22.83%	10.00%	1.02%
Columbia Financial	8.54%	5.17%	0.67%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares TrustCo Bank Corp NY and Columbia Financial”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
TrustCo Bank Corp NY	$278.36 million	3.40	$61.14 million	$3.76	15.24
Columbia Financial	$284.45 million	10.58	$51.77 million	$0.29	38.48

TrustCo Bank Corp NY has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Columbia Financial. TrustCo Bank Corp NY is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Columbia Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

TrustCo Bank Corp NY beats Columbia Financial on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About TrustCo Bank Corp NY

TrustCo Bank Corp NY is a bank holding company whose principal subsidiary is Trustco Bank. Founded in 1902 as Schenectady Trust Company, the bank has grown from its roots in upstate New York into a regional community banking institution. Trustco Bank offers personal and business deposit accounts, including checking, savings and certificates of deposit, along with residential mortgages, home equity financing and other consumer and commercial loans. Its services also include online and mobile banking and trust and investment services.

About Columbia Financial

Columbia Financial, Inc. is the holding company for Columbia Bank, a community bank headquartered in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. The bank serves individuals, businesses and organizations, primarily in northern and central New Jersey. Columbia Bank offers deposit accounts and lending services, including residential mortgages, home equity loans, commercial real estate financing and other business loans. It also provides digital and traditional banking services for personal and business customers. The bank traces its history to the Columbia Building and Loan Association, established in 1926.