Business First Bancshares (BFST) Competitors

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) and First Community Bankshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, media sentiment, earnings, community ranking, risk, institutional ownership and valuation.

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, BFST or FCBC?

Business First Bancshares has higher revenue and earnings than First Community Bankshares. Business First Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Community Bankshares, 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	$254.16M	3.28	$71.04M	$2.32	12.16
First Community Bankshares	$174.62M	4.79	$48.02M	$2.79	16.38

Does the media refer more to BFST or FCBC?

In the previous week, Business First Bancshares and Business First Bancshares both had 7 articles in the media. First Community Bankshares' average media sentiment score of 0.63 beat Business First Bancshares' score of 0.23 indicating that First Community Bankshares is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Business First Bancshares	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
First Community Bankshares	3 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts rate BFST or FCBC?

Business First Bancshares currently has a consensus price target of $28.75, indicating a potential upside of 1.95%. First Community Bankshares has a consensus price target of $38.00, indicating a potential downside of 16.85%. Given Business First Bancshares' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Business First Bancshares is more favorable than First Community Bankshares.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Business First Bancshares	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
First Community Bankshares	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Which has more risk & volatility, BFST or FCBC?

Business First Bancshares has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Community Bankshares has a beta of 0.52, suggesting that its share price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in BFST or FCBC?

47.3% of Business First Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 35.0% of First Community Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.5% of Business First Bancshares shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of First Community Bankshares shares are owned by company 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 MarketBeat Community prefer BFST or FCBC?

First Community Bankshares received 111 more outperform votes than Business First Bancshares when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 58.29% of users gave First Community Bankshares an outperform vote while only 57.66% of users gave Business First Bancshares an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Business First Bancshares	Outperform Votes 128 57.66%	Underperform Votes 94 42.34%
First Community Bankshares	Outperform Votes 239 58.29%	Underperform Votes 171 41.71%

Is BFST or FCBC a better dividend stock?

Business First Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. First Community Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Business First Bancshares pays out 24.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Community Bankshares pays out 44.4% 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 Community Bankshares has increased its dividend for 13 consecutive years. First Community Bankshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is BFST or FCBC more profitable?

First Community Bankshares has a net margin of 27.18% compared to Business First Bancshares' net margin of 14.92%. Business First Bancshares' return on equity of 11.57% beat First Community Bankshares' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Business First Bancshares	14.92%	11.57%	1.02%
First Community Bankshares	27.18%	10.70%	1.68%

Summary

Business First Bancshares and First Community Bankshares tied by winning 10 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.