First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA) Competitors

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, media sentiment, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability and valuation.

Does the media refer more to HWC or FCNCA?

In the previous week, Hancock Whitney had 25 more articles in the media than First Citizens BancShares. MarketBeat recorded 34 mentions for Hancock Whitney and 9 mentions for First Citizens BancShares. First Citizens BancShares' average media sentiment score of 1.55 beat Hancock Whitney's score of 0.75 indicating that First Citizens BancShares is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Hancock Whitney	11 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	13 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
First Citizens BancShares	7 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in HWC or FCNCA?

81.2% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.0% of First Citizens BancShares shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.4% of First Citizens BancShares shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Is HWC or FCNCA more profitable?

Hancock Whitney has a net margin of 23.28% compared to First Citizens BancShares' net margin of 17.10%. First Citizens BancShares' return on equity of 11.98% beat Hancock Whitney's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hancock Whitney	23.28%	11.21%	1.35%
First Citizens BancShares	17.10%	11.98%	1.16%

Do analysts rate HWC or FCNCA?

Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus target price of $66.71, indicating a potential upside of 10.80%. First Citizens BancShares has a consensus target price of $2,299.50, indicating a potential upside of 8.28%. Given Hancock Whitney's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Hancock Whitney is more favorable than First Citizens BancShares.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hancock Whitney	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86
First Citizens BancShares	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	8 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.62

Is HWC or FCNCA a better dividend stock?

Hancock Whitney pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. First Citizens BancShares pays an annual dividend of $7.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Hancock Whitney pays out 33.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Citizens BancShares pays out 4.5% 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. Hancock Whitney has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and First Citizens BancShares has raised its dividend for 8 consecutive years.

Which has more volatility & risk, HWC or FCNCA?

Hancock Whitney has a beta of 1.05, suggesting that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Citizens BancShares has a beta of 0.64, suggesting that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has better earnings & valuation, HWC or FCNCA?

First Citizens BancShares has higher revenue and earnings than Hancock Whitney. Hancock Whitney is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Citizens BancShares, 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
Hancock Whitney	$2.06B	2.51	$460.82M	$5.43	11.09
First Citizens BancShares	$14.97B	1.89	$2.78B	$174.64	12.16

Summary

Hancock Whitney and First Citizens BancShares tied by winning 10 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.