First Busey (BUSE) Competitors

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) and First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, media sentiment and earnings.

Is BUSE or FFBC more profitable?

First Financial Bancorp. has a net margin of 19.41% compared to First Busey's net margin of 9.48%. First Financial Bancorp.'s return on equity of 10.57% beat First Busey's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Busey	9.48%	8.76%	1.04%
First Financial Bancorp.	19.41%	10.57%	1.42%

Do analysts prefer BUSE or FFBC?

First Busey presently has a consensus price target of $27.33, suggesting a potential upside of 16.13%. First Financial Bancorp. has a consensus price target of $29.83, suggesting a potential upside of 21.79%. Given First Financial Bancorp.'s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe First Financial Bancorp. is more favorable than First Busey.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Busey	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.43
First Financial Bancorp.	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Which has more risk and volatility, BUSE or FFBC?

First Busey has a beta of 0.77, indicating that its stock price is 23% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Financial Bancorp. has a beta of 0.96, indicating that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, BUSE or FFBC?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Busey	$663.36M	3.16	$113.69M	$1.12	21.01
First Financial Bancorp.	$852.23M	2.75	$228.83M	$2.50	9.80

Does the media favor BUSE or FFBC?

In the previous week, First Busey had 2 more articles in the media than First Financial Bancorp.. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for First Busey and 6 mentions for First Financial Bancorp.. First Busey's average media sentiment score of 0.32 beat First Financial Bancorp.'s score of 0.25 indicating that First Busey is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
First Busey	2 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
First Financial Bancorp.	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in BUSE or FFBC?

56.5% of First Busey shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.2% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.9% of First Busey shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of First Financial Bancorp. 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.

Is BUSE or FFBC a better dividend stock?

First Busey pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. First Financial Bancorp. pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. First Busey pays out 89.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. First Financial Bancorp. pays out 40.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Busey has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years and First Financial Bancorp. has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. First Busey is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

First Financial Bancorp. beats First Busey on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.