Reviewing ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) & First Foundation (NYSE:FFWM)

First Foundation (NYSE:FFWM) and ACNB (NASDAQ:ACNB) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Volatility & Risk

First Foundation has a beta of 0.99, meaning that its share price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ACNB has a beta of 0.95, meaning that its share price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for First Foundation and ACNB, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Foundation	0	0	0	0	0.00
ACNB	0	0	3	0	3.00

ACNB has a consensus price target of $49.25, suggesting a potential upside of 13.19%. Given ACNB’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe ACNB is more favorable than First Foundation.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares First Foundation and ACNB”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Foundation	$545.12 million	0.83	-$92.41 million	($1.41)	-3.91
ACNB	$132.20 million	3.45	$31.85 million	$2.69	16.17

ACNB has lower revenue, but higher earnings than First Foundation. First Foundation is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ACNB, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares First Foundation and ACNB’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Foundation	-15.29%	-1.20%	-0.09%
ACNB	15.64%	10.22%	1.25%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.1% of First Foundation shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 32.4% of ACNB shares are held by institutional investors. 9.5% of First Foundation shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.5% of ACNB shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

ACNB beats First Foundation on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Foundation

First Foundation Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides personal banking, business banking, and private wealth management services in the United States. It operates through two segments, Banking and Wealth Management. The company offers a range of bank deposit products, including personal and business checking accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, and time certificate of deposits; and loan products consisting of multifamily and single family residential real estate loans, commercial real estate loans, and commercial term loans and line of credits, as well as consumer loans, such as personal installment loans and line of credits, and home equity line of credits. It also provides various specialized services comprising trust services, internet and mobile banking, remote deposit capture services, merchant credit card services, ATM cards, Visa debit cards, and business sweep accounts, as well as insurance brokerage services and equipment financing solutions. In addition, the company offers investment management and financial planning services; treasury management services; advisory and coordination services in the areas of estate planning, retirement planning, and charitable and business ownership issues; and financial, investment, and economic advisory and related services. Further, it provides support services, including the processing and transmission of financial and economic data for charitable organizations. The company operates through a network of 28 branch offices and 3 loan production offices in California, Nevada, Texas, and Hawaii. First Foundation Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

About ACNB

ACNB Corporation, a financial holding company, offers banking, insurance, and financial services to individual, business, and government customers in the United States. The company provides checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits and debit cards. It also offers commercial lending products, such as commercial mortgages, real estate development and construction loans, accounts receivable and inventory financing, and agricultural and governmental loans; consumer lending products, including home equity loans and lines of credit, automobile and recreational vehicle loans, manufactured housing loans, and personal lines of credit; and mortgage lending programs include personal residential mortgages, and residential construction and investment mortgage loans. In addition, the company provides other services that are related to testamentary trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable remainder trusts, guardianships, powers of attorney, custodial accounts, and investment management and advisory accounts; and retail brokerage services. Further, it acts as a trustee to invest in, protect, manage, and distribute financial assets. Additionally, the company offers property and casualty, health, life, and disability insurance products to commercial and personal clients; and online, telephone, and mobile banking, as well as automated teller machine services. ACNB Corporation was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.