Analyzing BayFirst Financial (NASDAQ:BAFN) and Magyar Bancorp (NASDAQ:MGYR)

Magyar Bancorp (NASDAQ:MGYR) and BayFirst Financial (NASDAQ:BAFN) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

Magyar Bancorp has a beta of 0.24, indicating that its stock price is 76% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BayFirst Financial has a beta of 0.53, indicating that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Magyar Bancorp and BayFirst Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Magyar Bancorp	0	1	0	0	2.00
BayFirst Financial	1	0	0	0	1.00

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Magyar Bancorp and BayFirst Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Magyar Bancorp	$58.42 million	2.15	$9.76 million	$1.87	10.40
BayFirst Financial	$104.19 million	2.26	-$22.94 million	($14.88)	-0.59

Magyar Bancorp has higher earnings, but lower revenue than BayFirst Financial. BayFirst Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Magyar Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

46.3% of Magyar Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 16.9% of BayFirst Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 11.1% of Magyar Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 56.6% of BayFirst Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Magyar Bancorp	18.89%	9.59%	1.13%
BayFirst Financial	-80.74%	-101.15%	-4.83%

Summary

Magyar Bancorp beats BayFirst Financial on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Magyar Bancorp

Magyar Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Magyar Bank that provides various consumer and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations in New Jersey, the United States. It accepts various deposit accounts, including demand, savings, NOW, money market, and retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides residential mortgage loans, multi-family and commercial real estate mortgage loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, commercial business loans, and construction loans, as well as small business administration loans. In addition, it offers non-deposit investment products and financial planning services, including insurance products, fixed and variable annuities, and retirement planning for individual and commercial customers; and buys, sells, and holds investment securities. The company has branch offices located in New Brunswick, North Brunswick, South Brunswick, Branchburg, Bridgewater, and Edison, New Jersey. Magyar Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

About BayFirst Financial

BayFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for BayFirst National Bank that provides community banking services for businesses and individuals. The company offers checking, savings, NOW, and money market deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and individual retirement account; and safety deposit boxes. It also provides commercial real estate mortgages; construction and development, working capital, and business loans; auto, boat, and recreational vehicle loans; and residential mortgages, personal lines of credit, and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers mobile and online banking, treasury management, wire transfers, cash management, merchant processing, remote deposit capture, night depositor, online bill payment, courier, retail investment, ACH originations, and other services. It operates full-service banking centers in St. Petersburg, Seminole, Pinellas Park, Clearwater, Sarasota, Tampa, Belleair Bluffs, and Bradenton, Florida. The company was formerly known as First Home Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to BayFirst Financial Corp. in May 2021. BayFirst Financial Corp. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida.