First Foundation (FFWM) Competitors

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

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, FFWM or ABCB?

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
First Foundation	$69.21M	6.67	-$92.41M	-$1.27	-4.41
Ameris Bancorp	$1.12B	4.15	$358.68M	$5.40	12.54

Does the media prefer FFWM or ABCB?

In the previous week, First Foundation had 2 more articles in the media than Ameris Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for First Foundation and 4 mentions for Ameris Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 0.47 beat First Foundation's score of -0.31 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 Foundation	1 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Ameris Bancorp	1 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of FFWM or ABCB?

73.1% of First Foundation shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 9.5% of First Foundation shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by 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.

Is FFWM or ABCB a better dividend stock?

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

Do analysts rate FFWM or ABCB?

First Foundation presently has a consensus price target of $6.67, suggesting a potential upside of 19.05%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus price target of $71.43, suggesting a potential upside of 5.45%. Given First Foundation's higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe First Foundation is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

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

Which has more volatility and risk, FFWM or ABCB?

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

Is FFWM or ABCB 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
First Foundation	-13.94%	-0.73%	-0.05%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

Summary

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