Equity Bancshares (EQBK) Competitors

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) and Equity Bancshares (NASDAQ:EQBK) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Do analysts prefer BUSE or EQBK?

First Busey currently has a consensus price target of $27.17, indicating a potential upside of 12.40%. Equity Bancshares has a consensus price target of $47.80, indicating a potential upside of 15.57%. Given Equity Bancshares' higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equity Bancshares is more favorable than First Busey.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Busey	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Equity Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Is BUSE or EQBK a better dividend stock?

First Busey pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Equity Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. 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. Equity Bancshares pays out 14.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Busey has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years and Equity Bancshares has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. First Busey is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do institutionals & insiders hold more shares of BUSE or EQBK?

56.5% of First Busey shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.8% of Equity Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 3.9% of First Busey shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.6% of Equity Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media refer more to BUSE or EQBK?

In the previous week, First Busey had 8 more articles in the media than Equity Bancshares. MarketBeat recorded 9 mentions for First Busey and 1 mentions for Equity Bancshares. Equity Bancshares' average media sentiment score of 1.81 beat First Busey's score of 1.62 indicating that Equity Bancshares is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
First Busey	8 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
Equity Bancshares	1 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Which has more volatility & risk, BUSE or EQBK?

First Busey has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its share price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equity Bancshares has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its share price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher earnings & valuation, BUSE or EQBK?

First Busey has higher revenue and earnings than Equity Bancshares. Equity Bancshares 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	$557.44M	3.86	$113.69M	$1.12	21.58
Equity Bancshares	$228.94M	3.47	$62.62M	$4.03	10.26

Is BUSE or EQBK more profitable?

Equity Bancshares has a net margin of 18.66% compared to First Busey's net margin of 9.48%. Equity Bancshares' return on equity of 14.64% beat First Busey's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Busey	9.48%	8.76%	1.04%
Equity Bancshares	18.66%	14.64%	1.31%

Summary

Equity Bancshares beats First Busey on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.