Independent Bank (INDB) Competitors

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

Do analysts rate ABCB or INDB?

Ameris Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $72.14, suggesting a potential upside of 3.03%. Independent Bank has a consensus target price of $71.00, suggesting a potential upside of 7.45%. Given Independent Bank's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Independent Bank 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
Independent Bank	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67

Is ABCB or INDB a better dividend stock?

Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Independent Bank pays an annual dividend of $2.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Independent Bank pays out 53.3% 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. Independent Bank has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years. Independent Bank is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do institutionals and insiders believe in ABCB or INDB?

91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.4% of Independent Bank shares are held by institutional investors. 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Independent Bank shares are held by company 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.

Is ABCB or INDB more profitable?

Ameris Bancorp has a net margin of 21.46% compared to Independent Bank's net margin of 18.93%. Ameris Bancorp's return on equity of 9.57% beat Independent Bank's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%
Independent Bank	18.93%	6.39%	0.98%

Does the media refer more to ABCB or INDB?

In the previous week, Ameris Bancorp had 2 more articles in the media than Independent Bank. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Ameris Bancorp and 5 mentions for Independent Bank. Independent Bank's average media sentiment score of 1.27 beat Ameris Bancorp's score of 1.07 indicating that Independent Bank is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Ameris Bancorp	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Independent Bank	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has better valuation & earnings, ABCB or INDB?

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Independent Bank. Ameris Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Independent Bank, 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	$1.13B	4.27	$358.68M	$5.68	12.33
Independent Bank	$980.77M	3.36	$192.08M	$4.43	14.92

Which has more risk and volatility, ABCB or INDB?

Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Independent Bank has a beta of 0.87, suggesting that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats Independent Bank on 14 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.