FFIN vs. ABCB, BANR, FRME, GBCI, OBK, PPBI, SSB, WSFS, CBU, and PB
Should you be buying First Financial Bankshares stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of First Financial Bankshares include Ameris Bancorp (ABCB), Banner (BANR), First Merchants (FRME), Glacier Bancorp (GBCI), Origin Bancorp (OBK), Pacific Premier Bancorp (PPBI), SouthState (SSB), WSFS Financial (WSFS), Community Financial System (CBU), and Prosperity Bancshares (PB). These companies are all part of the "finance" sector.
First Financial Bankshares vs. Its Competitors
Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) and First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and media sentiment.
Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. First Financial Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Financial Bankshares pays out 46.9% 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 raised 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.
91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 69.8% of First Financial Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.2% of First Financial Bankshares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
In the previous week, First Financial Bankshares had 6 more articles in the media than Ameris Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 9 mentions for First Financial Bankshares and 3 mentions for Ameris Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.39 beat First Financial Bankshares' score of 1.08 indicating that Ameris Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the media.
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.
Ameris Bancorp currently has a consensus price target of $71.43, indicating a potential upside of 6.14%. First Financial Bankshares has a consensus price target of $38.50, indicating a potential upside of 4.82%. Given Ameris Bancorp's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Ameris Bancorp is more favorable than First Financial Bankshares.
Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.93, indicating that its stock price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Financial Bankshares has a beta of 0.87, indicating that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.
First Financial Bankshares has a net margin of 30.01% compared to Ameris Bancorp's net margin of 21.46%. First Financial Bankshares' return on equity of 14.31% beat Ameris Bancorp's return on equity.
Summary
Ameris Bancorp beats First Financial Bankshares on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.
Get First Financial Bankshares News Delivered to You Automatically
Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for FFIN and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter.
New MarketBeat Followers Over Time
This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding FFIN and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over Time
This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
Skip Chart
First Financial Bankshares Competitors List
Related Companies and Tools
This page (NASDAQ:FFIN) was last updated on 7/13/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff