ServisFirst Bancshares (SFBS) Competitors

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

Which has better earnings & valuation, SFBS or ABCB?

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than ServisFirst Bancshares. Ameris Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ServisFirst 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
ServisFirst Bancshares	$981.18M	4.51	$227.24M	$4.57	17.74
Ameris Bancorp	$1.13B	4.56	$358.68M	$5.68	13.18

Does the media favor SFBS or ABCB?

In the previous week, ServisFirst Bancshares had 8 more articles in the media than Ameris Bancorp. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for ServisFirst Bancshares and 0 mentions for Ameris Bancorp. Ameris Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.21 beat ServisFirst Bancshares' score of 0.78 indicating that Ameris Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
ServisFirst Bancshares	Positive
Ameris Bancorp	Positive

Is SFBS or ABCB a better dividend stock?

ServisFirst Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $1.34 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. ServisFirst Bancshares pays out 29.3% 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. ServisFirst Bancshares has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years. ServisFirst Bancshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Which has more risk & volatility, SFBS or ABCB?

ServisFirst Bancshares has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.94, indicating that its stock price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in SFBS or ABCB?

67.3% of ServisFirst Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.7% of ServisFirst Bancshares 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 stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Is SFBS or ABCB more profitable?

ServisFirst Bancshares has a net margin of 24.62% compared to Ameris Bancorp's net margin of 21.46%. ServisFirst Bancshares' return on equity of 15.47% beat Ameris Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ServisFirst Bancshares	24.62%	15.47%	1.46%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

Do analysts prefer SFBS or ABCB?

ServisFirst Bancshares currently has a consensus price target of $92.00, indicating a potential upside of 13.49%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus price target of $72.14, indicating a potential downside of 3.66%. Given ServisFirst Bancshares' higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe ServisFirst Bancshares is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ServisFirst Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.20
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats ServisFirst Bancshares on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.