ACNB Corporation’s (NASDAQ:ACNB) profitability and risk are largely affected by the underlying economic growth for the region it operates in US given it is a small-cap stock with a market capitalisation of US$261m. Since banks make money by reinvesting its customers’ deposits in the form of loans, strong economic growth will drive the level of savings deposits and demand for loans, directly impacting the cash flows of those banks. After the Financial Crisis in 2008, a set of reforms called Basel III was created with the purpose of strengthening regulation, risk management and supervision in the banking sector. These reforms target bank level regulation and aims to improve the banking sector’s ability to absorb shocks arising from economic stress which could expose financial institutions to vulnerabilities. Its financial position may weaken in an adverse macro event such as political instability which is why it is crucial to understand how well the bank manages its risks. Low levels of leverage coupled with sufficient liquidity may place ACNB in a safe position in the face of adverse headwinds. We can measure this risk exposure by analysing three metrics for leverage and liquidity which I will take you through today.
See our latest analysis for ACNB
Why Does ACNB’s Leverage Matter?
Banks with low leverage are better positioned to weather adverse headwinds as they have less debt to pay off. A bank’s leverage may be thought of as the level of assets it owns compared to its own shareholders’ equity. Financial institutions are required to have a certain level of buffer to meet capital adequacy levels. ACNB’s leverage level of 9.8x is significantly below the appropriate ceiling of 20x. With assets 9.8 times equity, the banks has maintained a prudent level of its own fund relative to borrowed fund which places it in a strong position to pay back its debt in times of adverse events. Should the bank need to increase its debt levels to meet capital requirements, it will have abundant headroom to do so.What Is ACNB’s Level of Liquidity?
As I eluded to above, loans are relatively illiquid. It’s helpful to understand how much of this illiquid asset makes up ACNB’s total asset.
Normally, they should not exceed 70% of total assets,
however its current level of 78% means the bank has lent out 8.2% above the sensible threshold.
This means its revenue is reliant on these specific assets which means the bank is also
more likely to be exposed to default compared to its competitors with less loans.
Does ACNB Have Liquidity Mismatch?
A way banks make money is by lending out its deposits as loans. These loans tend to be fixed term which means they cannot be readily realized, conversely, on the liability side, customer deposits must be paid in very short notice and on-demand. This mismatch between illiquid loans and liquid deposits poses a risk for the bank if unusual events occur and requires it to immediately repay its depositors. Relative to the prudent industry loan to deposit level of 90%, ACNB’s ratio of over 96% is higher, which puts the bank in a risky position as it borders negative liquidity disparity between loan and deposit levels. Essentially, for $1 of deposits with the bank, it lends out more than $0.9 which is risky.Next Steps:
We’ve only touched on operational risks for ACNB in this article. But as a stock investment, there are other fundamentals you need to understand. I’ve put together three key aspects you should further examine:
- Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ACNB’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for ACNB’s outlook.
- Valuation: What is ACNB worth today? Has the future growth potential already been factored into the price? The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether ACNB is currently mispriced by the market.
- Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.
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