Analyzing Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) & 1st Colonial Bancorp (OTCMKTS:FCOB)

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) and 1st Colonial Bancorp (OTCMKTS:FCOB) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, profitability and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Independent Bank and 1st Colonial Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Independent Bank	1	2	4	1	2.63
1st Colonial Bancorp	0	0	0	0	0.00

Independent Bank currently has a consensus target price of $90.71, indicating a potential upside of 11.16%. Given Independent Bank’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Independent Bank is more favorable than 1st Colonial Bancorp.

Profitability

This table compares Independent Bank and 1st Colonial Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Independent Bank	19.14%	8.66%	1.26%
1st Colonial Bancorp	14.71%	10.87%	1.04%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Independent Bank and 1st Colonial Bancorp”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Independent Bank	$1.17 billion	3.37	$205.12 million	$5.04	16.19
1st Colonial Bancorp	$49.61 million	2.04	$7.30 million	$1.48	13.51

Independent Bank has higher revenue and earnings than 1st Colonial Bancorp. 1st Colonial Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Independent Bank, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

83.4% of Independent Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.4% of 1st Colonial Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Independent Bank shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Independent Bank has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, 1st Colonial Bancorp has a beta of 0.01, meaning that its share price is 99% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Independent Bank beats 1st Colonial Bancorp on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Independent Bank

Independent Bank Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Rockland Trust Company that provides commercial banking products and services to individuals and small-to-medium sized businesses in the United States. The company provides interest checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as demand deposits and time certificates of deposit. It offers commercial real estate and construction, commercial and industrial, small business, secured and unsecured commercial, and consumer real estate loans; term loans and revolving/nonrevolving lines of credit; overdraft protection and letters of credit; and residential mortgages and home equity loans and lines. In addition, the company provides cash management services, such as ACH transaction processing, positive pay, and remote deposit services; investment management and trust services to individuals, institutions, small businesses, and charitable institutions; mobile, online, and telephone banking; estate settlement, financial planning, tax services, and other services; automated teller machines; debit and credit cards; and mutual fund and unit investment trust shares, third party model portfolios, general securities, fixed and variable annuities, and life insurance products, as well as advisory platforms. Further, it invests in low-income housing tax credit projects; holds, maintains, and disposes foreclosed properties; and operates as an investment advisor. Independent Bank Corp. was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Rockland, Massachusetts.

About 1st Colonial Bancorp

1st Colonial Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for 1st Colonial Community Bank that provides a range of business and consumer financial services in New Jersey. The company offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, club accounts, and business and personal checking accounts. It also provides home equity loans, home equity lines of credit, personal and vehicle loans, residential and commercial mortgages, construction loans, business lines of credit, equipment and vehicle financing, real estate loans, working capital line of credit, and business acquisition loans, as well as small business administration loans. In addition, the company offers cash management services comprising remote deposit capture, ACH/wire transfer, night deposit drop, and merchant services; safe deposit boxes; and coin counting, online and mobile banking, debit card, and ATM services. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.