Meridian Bank (MRBK) Competitors

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) and Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, dividends, media sentiment and analyst recommendations.

Which has more risk & volatility, BFST or MRBK?

Business First Bancshares has a beta of 0.86, suggesting that its stock price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Meridian Bank has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is BFST or MRBK more profitable?

Business First Bancshares has a net margin of 15.47% compared to Meridian Bank's net margin of 9.01%. Business First Bancshares' return on equity of 11.21% beat Meridian Bank's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Business First Bancshares	15.47%	11.21%	1.06%
Meridian Bank	9.01%	10.62%	0.75%

Is BFST or MRBK a better dividend stock?

Business First Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Meridian Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Business First Bancshares pays out 22.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Meridian Bank pays out 31.1% 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. Business First Bancshares has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Which has better earnings and valuation, BFST or MRBK?

Business First Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than Meridian Bank. Business First Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Meridian 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
Business First Bancshares	$458.96M	1.51	$65.11M	$2.51	9.31
Meridian Bank	$197.37M	0.87	$16.35M	$1.61	9.44

Do analysts recommend BFST or MRBK?

Business First Bancshares currently has a consensus target price of $30.75, suggesting a potential upside of 31.58%. Meridian Bank has a consensus target price of $17.50, suggesting a potential upside of 15.13%. Given Business First Bancshares' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Business First Bancshares is more favorable than Meridian Bank.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Business First Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.80
Meridian Bank	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67

Do institutionals and insiders believe in BFST or MRBK?

47.4% of Business First Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 58.6% of Meridian Bank shares are held by institutional investors. 5.7% of Business First Bancshares shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 14.4% of Meridian Bank shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media prefer BFST or MRBK?

In the previous week, Business First Bancshares had 3 more articles in the media than Meridian Bank. MarketBeat recorded 3 mentions for Business First Bancshares and 0 mentions for Meridian Bank. Business First Bancshares' average media sentiment score of 1.18 beat Meridian Bank's score of 0.00 indicating that Business First Bancshares is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Business First Bancshares	Positive
Meridian Bank	Neutral

Summary

Business First Bancshares beats Meridian Bank on 15 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.