u/SuccessTasty9149 ·
Reddit — r/ValueInvesting
· March 21, 2026 at 00:57
· ⬆ 18 pts
· 💬 10 comments
| View on Reddit ↗
AI Summary
Summary
The author presents a value investing thesis for Greene County Bancorp (GCBC), a micro-cap New York community bank trading at $21.68.
The core argument centers on its Mutual Holding Company (MHC) structure, where the 51% majority owner waives dividends, allowing the bank to rapidly compound book value for minority shareholders.
Quality assessment: Well-researched DD. The author uses multiple valuation models, highlights specific structural advantages (MHC waiver), and points to recent insider buying to support the thesis.
Score18
Comments10
Upvote %96%
▶ Full Post Text
Today, folks were going to be talking about a boring business, a business overlooked during this AI craze, a business running since 1889. Drum roll please..... GCBC Green County Bancorp is a New York Community Bank. Its market cap is 377m, and the current price is 21.68.
Here's a quick snapshot courtsey of Claude.
|Metric|Value|Context|
|:-|:-|:-|
|Current Price|**$21.68**|Down from $44.90 ATH|
|52-Week Range|$20.00 – $26.04|Near 52-week low|
|Market Cap|**\~$377M**||
|Shares Outstanding|17.22M||
|EPS Q2 (Dec 2025)|**$0.60**|\+36.4% YoY|
|TTM EPS (est.)|**\~$2.20**|Accelerating|
|Book Value/Share|**$15.17**|Growing rapidly|
|P/E|**\~9.85x**||
|P/Book|**1.43x**|vs. CMTV's 2.86x|
|ROE (FY2025)|**16.27%**|Up from 12.87% in FY2024|
|ROAA (MRQ)|**1.33%**|Up from 0.93%|
|NIM (MRQ)|**2.83%**|Accelerating rapidly|
|Efficiency Ratio|**47.1%**|Down from 57.5% — exceptional|
|Dividend (annual)|$0.40 (4 × $0.10)|1.85% yield|
|Payout Ratio|**18.7%**|Extremely conservative|
|Beta|**0.79**|Moderate volatility|
|Founded|1889|136 years|
|Fiscal Year End|**June 30**|Unusual — important to note|
51% of the shares are owned by Greene County Bancorp MHC. They have waived about 36.6 million in dividends, so the bank retains the capital, allowing the company to increase its book value faster.
This is almost unheard of in banking. The MHC structure means:
* The bank keeps \~54 cents of every dividend dollar it would otherwise pay out
* That retained capital goes directly into book value per share growth
* Minority shareholders (you) benefit from the compounding without paying for it
* Total asset growth of 262% since 2016 and tangible book value per share growth of 184% since 2016 [sec](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001409970/000140997024000036/q224exhibit991er.htm) — this is the MHC waiver at work
One of my biggest filters is finding insider buys, which we have had a CEO + Two Directors buying in March of 2026. They have a buyback program and a dividend.
Here are some valuations that Claude helped me produce
**Graham Number**√(22.5 × $2.20 × $15.17)**$27.40**\+26%Book value grew from $12.10 → $15.17 in 18 months [sec](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001409970/000140997024000036/q224exhibit991er.htm) — Graham Number reprices upward every quarter
**DDM**MHC-adjusted earnings yield**$29.50**\+36%Standard DDM understates — MHC waiving dividends means earnings compound into book. Use earnings-based DDM: $2.20 ÷ (9% − 6.5%) = $29.50
**DCF**$2.20 growing 20%, 9% disc**$32.00**\+48%NIM from 2.83% toward 3.25% = 15–20% EPS growth for 3+ years. Even at 12% discount = $24 — still above current
**P/E Multiple**$2.20 × 12x peer avg**$26.40**\+22%Community banks 10–14x. At 12x = $26.40. At 13x (efficiency ratio premium) = $28.60
**Price/Book**$15.17 × 1.75x**$26.55**\+22%16.27% ROE justifies 1.7–2.0x book. At 1.75x = $26.55. At 2.0x = $30.34
**PEG (Lynch)**9.85x ÷ 36% growth = 0.27**$28.60**\+32%PEG 0.27 — target PEG 0.5 for banks = P/E 18x capped at 13x = $28.60
**Owner Earnings**$2.20 ÷ 8% target yield**$27.50**\+27%At Buffett's 7% yield = $31.43. At 8% = $27.50. All above the current price
**Average $28.28+30%**All 7 models above current price — strong convergence
Yes, I use AI to help me find the story. If that is a crime, I am guilty. I still find these stocks using OpenInsider to start, as well as Seeking Alpha and Simply Wall Street to find ideas.
My core metrics were hit
Insider buying
Legitimately well-run bank
Small-micro cap
Shareholder-friendly (buybacks/dividends)
Growing Rev
GCBC has an MHC structure where the majority owner waives dividends, combined with recent insider buying and an exceptional 47.1% efficiency ratio. The waived dividends allow the bank to retain capital and grow book value per share much faster than peers, benefiting minority shareholders without them paying for it. GCBC is an undervalued, well-run compounding machine with an average fair value target of $28.28 across 7 valuation models (~30% upside). Micro-cap liquidity constraints, regional banking macroeconomic risks, or potential regulatory changes to MHC dividend waiver allowances.
This Reddit post, published March 21, 2026,
features u/SuccessTasty9149
discussing GCBC.
1 trade idea extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.