First Foundation (FFWM) Competitors

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

Is ABCB or FFWM a better dividend stock?

Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. First Foundation pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Foundation pays out -3.1% 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.

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, ABCB or FFWM?

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than First Foundation. First Foundation is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ameris 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
Ameris Bancorp	$1.12B	4.15	$358.68M	$5.40	12.54
First Foundation	$69.21M	6.67	-$92.41M	-$1.27	-4.41

Do insiders and institutionals have more ownership in ABCB or FFWM?

91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.1% of First Foundation shares are held by institutional investors. 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 9.5% of First Foundation shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts rate ABCB or FFWM?

Ameris Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $71.43, indicating a potential upside of 5.52%. First Foundation has a consensus target price of $6.67, indicating a potential upside of 19.05%. Given First Foundation's higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Foundation is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86
First Foundation	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33

Does the media prefer ABCB or FFWM?

In the previous week, First Foundation had 3 more articles in the media than Ameris Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for First Foundation and 3 mentions for Ameris Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 0.59 beat First Foundation's score of -0.31 indicating that Ameris Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the media.

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

Which has more risk & volatility, ABCB or FFWM?

Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.93, suggesting that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Foundation has a beta of 0.99, suggesting that its share price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is ABCB or FFWM more profitable?

Ameris Bancorp has a net margin of 21.46% compared to First Foundation's net margin of -13.94%. Ameris Bancorp's return on equity of 9.57% beat First Foundation's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%
First Foundation	-13.94%	-0.73%	-0.05%

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats First Foundation on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.