First Bancorp (FBNC) Competitors

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

Do analysts recommend FBNC or ABCB?

First Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $53.67, indicating a potential downside of 1.58%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus target price of $72.14, indicating a potential upside of 0.09%. Given Ameris Bancorp's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Ameris Bancorp is more favorable than First Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.80
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Does the media refer more to FBNC or ABCB?

In the previous week, Ameris Bancorp had 7 more articles in the media than First Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 13 mentions for Ameris Bancorp and 6 mentions for First Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.59 beat First Bancorp's score of 1.13 indicating that Ameris Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
First Bancorp	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Ameris Bancorp	12 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Do insiders & institutionals believe in FBNC or ABCB?

68.4% of First Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of First Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, FBNC or ABCB?

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than First Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Bancorp, 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 Bancorp	$537.14M	4.21	$76.21M	$2.34	23.30
Ameris Bancorp	$1.13B	4.39	$358.68M	$5.68	12.69

Which has more risk and volatility, FBNC or ABCB?

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

Is FBNC or ABCB a better dividend stock?

First Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. First Bancorp pays out 39.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Is FBNC or ABCB more profitable?

Ameris Bancorp has a net margin of 21.46% compared to First Bancorp's net margin of 17.65%. Ameris Bancorp's return on equity of 9.57% beat First Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Bancorp	17.65%	8.96%	1.09%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats First Bancorp on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.