First Interstate BancSystem (FIBK) Competitors

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) and First Interstate BancSystem (NASDAQ:FIBK) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their media sentiment, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, profitability and community ranking.

Which has higher earnings and valuation, EWBC or FIBK?

East West Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than First Interstate BancSystem. East West Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Interstate BancSystem, 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
East West Bancorp	$2.57B	4.18	$1.17B	$8.33	9.30
First Interstate BancSystem	$999.70M	2.72	$226M	$2.19	11.87

Does the media favor EWBC or FIBK?

In the previous week, East West Bancorp had 11 more articles in the media than First Interstate BancSystem. MarketBeat recorded 21 mentions for East West Bancorp and 10 mentions for First Interstate BancSystem. East West Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 0.92 beat First Interstate BancSystem's score of 0.41 indicating that East West Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
East West Bancorp	13 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
First Interstate BancSystem	4 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in EWBC or FIBK?

89.5% of East West Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 88.7% of First Interstate BancSystem shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of East West Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.9% of First Interstate BancSystem shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is EWBC or FIBK a better dividend stock?

East West Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $2.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. First Interstate BancSystem pays an annual dividend of $1.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.2%. East West Bancorp pays out 28.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Interstate BancSystem pays out 85.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Do analysts prefer EWBC or FIBK?

East West Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $106.46, indicating a potential upside of 37.49%. First Interstate BancSystem has a consensus target price of $35.00, indicating a potential upside of 34.67%. Given East West Bancorp's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe East West Bancorp is more favorable than First Interstate BancSystem.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
East West Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.69
First Interstate BancSystem	2 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.14

Does the MarketBeat Community favor EWBC or FIBK?

East West Bancorp received 287 more outperform votes than First Interstate BancSystem when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 64.64% of users gave East West Bancorp an outperform vote while only 49.55% of users gave First Interstate BancSystem an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
East West Bancorp	Outperform Votes 563 64.64%	Underperform Votes 308 35.36%
First Interstate BancSystem	Outperform Votes 276 49.55%	Underperform Votes 281 50.45%

Which has more risk & volatility, EWBC or FIBK?

East West Bancorp has a beta of 1.09, meaning that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Interstate BancSystem has a beta of 0.81, meaning that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is EWBC or FIBK more profitable?

East West Bancorp has a net margin of 25.73% compared to First Interstate BancSystem's net margin of 15.94%. East West Bancorp's return on equity of 15.71% beat First Interstate BancSystem's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
East West Bancorp	25.73%	15.71%	1.58%
First Interstate BancSystem	15.94%	6.92%	0.75%

Summary

East West Bancorp beats First Interstate BancSystem on 17 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.