Assessing Jacksonville Bancorp Inc’s (NASDAQ:JXSB) performance as a company requires looking at more than just a years’ earnings data. Below, I will run you through a simple sense check to build perspective on how Jacksonville Bancorp is doing by comparing its most recent earnings with its historical trend, in addition to the performance of its thrifts and mortgage finance industry peers. See our latest analysis for Jacksonville Bancorp
Was JXSB weak performance lately part of a long-term decline?
For the most up-to-date info, I use data from the most recent 12 months, which annualizes the latest 6-month earnings release, or some times, the latest annual report is already the most recent financial data. This enables me to assess different companies on a more comparable basis, using new information. For Jacksonville Bancorp, the most recent bottom-line is $3.0M, which, relative to the previous year’s level, has fallen by -1.89%. Given that these figures are somewhat short-term, I have determined an annualized five-year value for Jacksonville Bancorp’s net income, which stands at $3.1M. This suggests that Jacksonville Bancorp’s annual earnings on average have previously been bigger, which signals a declining trend in profitability.
What could be happening here? Well, let’s look at what’s transpiring with margins and if the entire industry is feeling the heat. Revenue growth over the past few years, has been positive, nevertheless earnings growth has been declining. This implies that Jacksonville Bancorp has been growing expenses, which is hurting margins and earnings, and is not a sustainable practice. Looking at growth from a sector-level, the US thrifts and mortgage finance industry has been growing its average earnings by double-digit 11.49% in the prior twelve months, and 14.84% over the previous five years. This suggests that whatever tailwind the industry is profiting from, Jacksonville Bancorp has not been able to leverage it as much as its industry peers.
What does this mean?
Though Jacksonville Bancorp’s past data is helpful, it is only one aspect of my investment thesis. Generally companies that face a prolonged period of reduction in earnings are going through some sort of reinvestment phase in order to keep up with the latest industry disruption and growth. You should continue to research Jacksonville Bancorp to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:
1. Financial Health: Is JXSB’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here.