F.N.B. (FNB) Competitors

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

Does the media refer more to FNB or ABCB?

In the previous week, F.N.B. and F.N.B. both had 5 articles in the media. F.N.B.'s average media sentiment score of 0.81 beat Ameris Bancorp's score of 0.67 indicating that F.N.B. is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
F.N.B.	2 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Ameris Bancorp	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is FNB or ABCB a better dividend stock?

F.N.B. pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. F.N.B. pays out 38.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.8% 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.

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, FNB or ABCB?

F.N.B. has higher revenue and earnings than Ameris Bancorp. F.N.B. 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
F.N.B.	$2.57B	2.18	$465M	$1.26	12.37
Ameris Bancorp	$1.12B	4.15	$358.68M	$5.40	12.54

Which has more risk and volatility, FNB or ABCB?

F.N.B. has a beta of 0.92, indicating that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.93, indicating that its stock price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate FNB or ABCB?

F.N.B. presently has a consensus target price of $17.57, suggesting a potential upside of 12.78%. Ameris Bancorp has a consensus target price of $71.43, suggesting a potential upside of 5.45%. Given F.N.B.'s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe F.N.B. is more favorable than Ameris Bancorp.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
F.N.B.	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.14
Ameris Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Is FNB or ABCB more profitable?

Ameris Bancorp has a net margin of 21.46% compared to F.N.B.'s net margin of 17.78%. Ameris Bancorp's return on equity of 9.57% beat F.N.B.'s return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
F.N.B.	17.78%	7.97%	1.03%
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%

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

79.3% of F.N.B. shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of F.N.B. shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held 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.

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats F.N.B. on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.