First Financial Bankshares (FFIN) Competitors

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

Is FFIN or ABCB a better dividend stock?

First Financial Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. First Financial Bankshares pays out 44.2% 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. First Financial Bankshares has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years. First Financial Bankshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Which has more volatility & risk, FFIN or ABCB?

First Financial Bankshares has a beta of 0.86, meaning that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.94, meaning that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is FFIN or ABCB more profitable?

First Financial Bankshares has a net margin of 31.01% compared to Ameris Bancorp's net margin of 21.46%. First Financial Bankshares' return on equity of 14.69% beat Ameris Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Financial Bankshares	31.01%	14.69%	1.75%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

Does the media favor FFIN or ABCB?

In the previous week, First Financial Bankshares had 6 more articles in the media than Ameris Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for First Financial Bankshares and 0 mentions for Ameris Bancorp. First Financial Bankshares' average media sentiment score of 0.92 beat Ameris Bancorp's score of 0.00 indicating that First Financial Bankshares is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
First Financial Bankshares	Positive
Ameris Bancorp	Neutral

Which has higher earnings & valuation, FFIN or ABCB?

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than First Financial Bankshares. Ameris Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Financial Bankshares, 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 Financial Bankshares	$752.91M	6.10	$223.51M	$1.72	18.66
Ameris Bancorp	$1.13B	4.34	$358.68M	$5.68	12.53

Do analysts rate FFIN or ABCB?

First Financial Bankshares currently has a consensus price target of $39.00, indicating a potential upside of 21.49%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus price target of $72.14, indicating a potential upside of 1.34%. Given First Financial Bankshares' higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Financial Bankshares is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Financial Bankshares	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Do institutionals and insiders believe in FFIN or ABCB?

69.8% of First Financial Bankshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 4.2% of First Financial Bankshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

First Financial Bankshares beats Ameris Bancorp on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.