Mercantile Bank (MBWM) Competitors

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) and First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings and media sentiment.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in MBWM or BUSE?

58.6% of Mercantile Bank shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.5% of First Busey shares are held by institutional investors. 3.2% of Mercantile Bank shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.9% of First Busey shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media refer more to MBWM or BUSE?

In the previous week, First Busey had 9 more articles in the media than Mercantile Bank. MarketBeat recorded 16 mentions for First Busey and 7 mentions for Mercantile Bank. First Busey's average media sentiment score of 1.59 beat Mercantile Bank's score of 1.55 indicating that First Busey is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Mercantile Bank	6 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
First Busey	15 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Is MBWM or BUSE a better dividend stock?

Mercantile Bank pays an annual dividend of $1.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. First Busey pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Mercantile Bank pays out 29.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Busey pays out 89.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Mercantile Bank has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years and First Busey has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years.

Which has more risk and volatility, MBWM or BUSE?

Mercantile Bank has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Busey has a beta of 0.81, suggesting that its share price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has better valuation & earnings, MBWM or BUSE?

First Busey has higher revenue and earnings than Mercantile Bank. Mercantile Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Busey, 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
Mercantile Bank	$361.89M	2.23	$79.59M	$5.04	9.86
First Busey	$663.36M	3.32	$113.69M	$1.12	22.04

Is MBWM or BUSE more profitable?

Mercantile Bank has a net margin of 22.11% compared to First Busey's net margin of 9.48%. Mercantile Bank's return on equity of 13.52% beat First Busey's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mercantile Bank	22.11%	13.52%	1.34%
First Busey	9.48%	8.76%	1.04%

Do analysts rate MBWM or BUSE?

Mercantile Bank currently has a consensus target price of $55.25, suggesting a potential upside of 11.14%. First Busey has a consensus target price of $27.17, suggesting a potential upside of 10.03%. Given Mercantile Bank's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Mercantile Bank is more favorable than First Busey.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mercantile Bank	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.75
First Busey	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Summary

Mercantile Bank beats First Busey on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.