MetroCity Bankshares (MCBS) Competitors

MetroCity Bankshares (NASDAQ:MCBS) and First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk and media sentiment.

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, MCBS or BUSE?

First Busey has higher revenue and earnings than MetroCity Bankshares. MetroCity Bankshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First Busey, 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
MetroCity Bankshares	$235.98M	3.12	$64.50M	$2.57	11.26
First Busey	$663.36M	3.25	$113.69M	$1.07	22.53

Is MCBS or BUSE a better dividend stock?

MetroCity Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. First Busey pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. MetroCity Bankshares pays out 35.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Busey pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. First Busey has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years. First Busey is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media favor MCBS or BUSE?

In the previous week, First Busey had 4 more articles in the media than MetroCity Bankshares. MarketBeat recorded 9 mentions for First Busey and 5 mentions for MetroCity Bankshares. First Busey's average media sentiment score of 0.97 beat MetroCity Bankshares' score of 0.95 indicating that First Busey is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
MetroCity Bankshares	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
First Busey	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is MCBS or BUSE more profitable?

MetroCity Bankshares has a net margin of 28.03% compared to First Busey's net margin of 8.32%. MetroCity Bankshares' return on equity of 15.91% beat First Busey's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MetroCity Bankshares	28.03%	15.91%	1.83%
First Busey	8.32%	8.46%	0.96%

Do analysts prefer MCBS or BUSE?

MetroCity Bankshares currently has a consensus price target of $34.00, indicating a potential upside of 17.44%. First Busey has a consensus price target of $27.67, indicating a potential upside of 14.75%. Given MetroCity Bankshares' higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe MetroCity Bankshares is more favorable than First Busey.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MetroCity Bankshares	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00
First Busey	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Do insiders and institutionals believe in MCBS or BUSE?

25.3% of MetroCity Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.5% of First Busey shares are owned by institutional investors. 27.5% of MetroCity Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.9% of First Busey shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Which has more risk and volatility, MCBS or BUSE?

MetroCity Bankshares has a beta of 0.61, indicating that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Busey has a beta of 0.77, indicating that its share price is 23% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

First Busey beats MetroCity Bankshares on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.