Financial Comparison: Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) versus Hilltop (NYSE:HTH)

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) and Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Hilltop and Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hilltop	$1.11 billion	1.67	$109.65 million	$1.63	17.61
Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida	$510.68 million	4.62	$104.03 million	$1.38	20.00

Hilltop has higher revenue and earnings than Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida. Hilltop is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Hilltop has a beta of 1.13, meaning that its share price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida has a beta of 1.08, meaning that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Hilltop and Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hilltop	6.65%	4.90%	0.66%
Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida	14.55%	5.44%	0.78%

Dividends

Hilltop pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Hilltop pays out 41.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida pays out 52.2% 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.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

57.1% of Hilltop shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.8% of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida shares are owned by institutional investors. 29.3% of Hilltop shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Hilltop and Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hilltop	1	2	0	0	1.67
Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida	0	3	2	0	2.40

Hilltop currently has a consensus price target of $34.50, indicating a potential upside of 20.17%. Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida has a consensus price target of $28.70, indicating a potential upside of 3.99%. Given Hilltop’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Hilltop is more favorable than Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida.

Summary

Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida beats Hilltop on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hilltop

Hilltop Holdings Inc. provides business and consumer banking services. It operates through three segments: Banking, Broker-Dealer, and Mortgage Origination. The Banking segment offers savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit; lines and letters of credit, home improvement and equity loans, loans for purchasing and carrying securities, term, agricultural and commercial real estate, equipment loans, and other lending products; and mortgage, commercial and industrial loans, and term and construction finance. It also provides treasury management, asset management, check cards, safe deposit boxes, online banking, bill pay, and overdraft privilege services; and estate planning, management and administration, investment portfolio management, employee benefit accounts, and individual retirement accounts services, as well as automated teller machines. The Broker-Dealer segment offers public finance services that assist public entities in originating, syndicating, and distributing securities of municipalities and political subdivisions; specialized advisory and investment banking services; advice and guidance to arbitrage rebate compliance, portfolio management, and local government investment pool administration; advisory services and products for derivatives and commodities; agricultural insurance; and sells, trades in, and underwrites U.S. government and government agency bonds, corporate bonds, and municipal bonds; mortgage-backed, asset-backed, and commercial mortgage-backed securities and structured products; and provides asset and liability management advisory, clearing, retail, and securities lending services. The Mortgage Origination segment offers fixed and adjustable rate mortgages, jumbo, new construction, Federal Housing Administration, Veterans Affairs, and United States Department of Agriculture loans. Hilltop Holdings Inc. was incorporated in 1998 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

About Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida operates as the bank holding company for Seacoast National Bank that provides integrated financial services to retail and commercial customers in Florida. The company offers noninterest and interest-bearing demand deposit, money market, savings, and customer sweep accounts; time certificates of deposit; construction and land development, commercial and residential real estate, and commercial and financial loans; and consumer loans, including installment loans and revolving lines, as well as loans for automobiles, boats, and personal and family purposes. It also provides wealth management, mortgage, and insurance services through online and mobile banking solutions, as well as brokerage and annuity services. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Stuart, Florida.