Contrasting HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) and Chain Bridge Bancorp (NYSE:CBNA)

Chain Bridge Bancorp (NYSE:CBNA) and HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

Chain Bridge Bancorp has a beta of 0.47, suggesting that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HBT Financial has a beta of 0.58, suggesting that its stock price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Chain Bridge Bancorp and HBT Financial”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chain Bridge Bancorp	$59.32 million	3.95	$20.24 million	$3.08	11.59
HBT Financial	$293.97 million	3.03	$77.01 million	$2.44	11.63

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

78.6% of HBT Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 25.9% of Chain Bridge Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 59.7% of HBT Financial shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Chain Bridge Bancorp and HBT Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chain Bridge Bancorp	34.11%	12.88%	1.29%
HBT Financial	26.20%	13.69%	1.58%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Chain Bridge Bancorp and HBT Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chain Bridge Bancorp	1	3	0	0	1.75
HBT Financial	0	3	4	0	2.57

Chain Bridge Bancorp presently has a consensus price target of $33.00, indicating a potential downside of 7.58%. HBT Financial has a consensus price target of $28.50, indicating a potential upside of 0.42%. Given HBT Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe HBT Financial is more favorable than Chain Bridge Bancorp.

Summary

HBT Financial beats Chain Bridge Bancorp on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chain Bridge Bancorp

Chain Bridge Bancorp, Inc. operates as a Delaware-chartered bank holding company for Chain Bridge Bank, National Association that provides commercial and personal banking, and trust services in the United States. Its deposit products include non-interest-bearing and interest-bearing checking accounts, savings accounts, and money market accounts. The company’s loan portfolio comprises of residential and commercial real estate loans, commercial loans, and consumer loans. It also provides treasury management, payments, trusts and estate administration, wealth management, and asset custody services. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

About HBT Financial

HBT Financial, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts. Its loan offering comprises owner and non-owner occupied commercial real estate; construction and land development and multi-family; commercial and industrial; agricultural and farmland; and one-to-four family residential loans, as well as municipal, consumer, and other loans. The company also offers wealth management services, including financial planning to consumers, trusts, and estates; trustee and custodial; investment management; corporate retirement plan consulting and administration; and retail brokerage services. In addition, it provides farmland management, and farmland sales and services; commercial checking accounts; and treasury management services, as well as originates and sells residential mortgage loans. Further, the company offers digital banking services, such as online and mobile banking, and digital payment services, as well as personal financial management tools. The company was formerly known as Heartland Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to HBT Financial, Inc. in September 2019. HBT Financial, Inc. was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Bloomington, Illinois.