BankUnited (BKU) Competitors

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) and Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, media sentiment, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.

Does the media refer more to BKU or ABCB?

In the previous week, Ameris Bancorp had 4 more articles in the media than BankUnited. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Ameris Bancorp and 3 mentions for BankUnited. BankUnited's average media sentiment score of 1.56 beat Ameris Bancorp's score of 1.05 indicating that BankUnited is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
BankUnited	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
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

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

99.7% of BankUnited shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of BankUnited shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts rate BKU or ABCB?

BankUnited presently has a consensus price target of $41.55, indicating a potential upside of 8.54%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus price target of $72.14, indicating a potential upside of 1.20%. Given BankUnited's higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe BankUnited is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
BankUnited	1 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.18
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Is BKU or ABCB more profitable?

Ameris Bancorp has a net margin of 21.46% compared to BankUnited's net margin of 13.19%. Ameris Bancorp's return on equity of 9.57% beat BankUnited's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
BankUnited	13.19%	9.00%	0.73%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

Is BKU or ABCB a better dividend stock?

BankUnited pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. BankUnited pays out 36.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.1% 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. BankUnited has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years. BankUnited is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Which has more risk & volatility, BKU or ABCB?

BankUnited has a beta of 1.32, suggesting that its stock price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has stronger valuation & earnings, BKU or ABCB?

Ameris Bancorp has lower revenue, but higher earnings than BankUnited. BankUnited 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
BankUnited	$2.02B	1.42	$232.47M	$3.41	11.22
Ameris Bancorp	$1.13B	4.34	$358.68M	$5.68	12.55

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats BankUnited on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.