Northwest Bancshares (NWBI) Competitors

Northwest Bancshares (NASDAQ:NWBI) and First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) 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.

Does the media refer more to NWBI or FFBC?

In the previous week, First Financial Bancorp. had 12 more articles in the media than Northwest Bancshares. MarketBeat recorded 14 mentions for First Financial Bancorp. and 2 mentions for Northwest Bancshares. First Financial Bancorp.'s average media sentiment score of 1.07 beat Northwest Bancshares' score of 0.93 indicating that First Financial Bancorp. is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Northwest Bancshares	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
First Financial Bancorp.	9 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has better valuation & earnings, NWBI or FFBC?

First Financial Bancorp. has higher revenue and earnings than Northwest Bancshares. First Financial Bancorp. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Northwest Bancshares, 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
Northwest Bancshares	$756.21M	2.44	$100.28M	$1.12	11.28
First Financial Bancorp.	$1.62B	1.57	$228.83M	$2.50	10.61

Which has more risk and volatility, NWBI or FFBC?

Northwest Bancshares has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Financial Bancorp. has a beta of 0.98, suggesting that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is NWBI or FFBC more profitable?

First Financial Bancorp. has a net margin of 19.41% compared to Northwest Bancshares' net margin of 17.47%. First Financial Bancorp.'s return on equity of 10.57% beat Northwest Bancshares' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Northwest Bancshares	17.47%	9.34%	1.05%
First Financial Bancorp.	19.41%	10.57%	1.42%

Do analysts rate NWBI or FFBC?

Northwest Bancshares currently has a consensus target price of $15.00, suggesting a potential upside of 18.76%. First Financial Bancorp. has a consensus target price of $29.40, suggesting a potential upside of 10.82%. Given Northwest Bancshares' higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Northwest Bancshares is more favorable than First Financial Bancorp..

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Northwest Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00
First Financial Bancorp.	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.40

Is NWBI or FFBC a better dividend stock?

Northwest Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.3%. First Financial Bancorp. pays an annual dividend of $0.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Northwest Bancshares pays out 71.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Financial Bancorp. pays out 38.4% 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. First Financial Bancorp. has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in NWBI or FFBC?

66.3% of Northwest Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.2% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are held by institutional investors. 1.1% of Northwest Bancshares shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of First Financial Bancorp. 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.

Summary

First Financial Bancorp. beats Northwest Bancshares on 15 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.