Reviewing Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) & F.N.B. (NYSE:FNB)

F.N.B. (NYSE:FNB) and Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

F.N.B. has a beta of 0.95, suggesting that its share price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Southern First Bancshares has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

79.3% of F.N.B. shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.0% of Southern First Bancshares shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of F.N.B. shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 7.6% of Southern First Bancshares shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for F.N.B. and Southern First Bancshares, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
F.N.B.	0	1	5	0	2.83
Southern First Bancshares	0	0	1	0	3.00

F.N.B. presently has a consensus price target of $16.83, suggesting a potential downside of 1.90%. Southern First Bancshares has a consensus price target of $44.00, suggesting a potential downside of 1.12%. Given Southern First Bancshares’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Southern First Bancshares is more favorable than F.N.B..

Profitability

This table compares F.N.B. and Southern First Bancshares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
F.N.B.	16.29%	8.49%	1.10%
Southern First Bancshares	6.67%	4.42%	0.34%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares F.N.B. and Southern First Bancshares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
F.N.B.	$2.23 billion	2.77	$485.00 million	$1.09	15.74
Southern First Bancshares	$187.46 million	1.94	$13.43 million	$1.73	25.72

F.N.B. has higher revenue and earnings than Southern First Bancshares. F.N.B. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Southern First Bancshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

F.N.B. beats Southern First Bancshares on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About F.N.B.

F.N.B. Corporation, a bank and financial holding company, provides a range of financial products and services primarily to consumers, corporations, governments, and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Community Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance. The Community Banking segment offers commercial and consumer banking services, including corporate and small business banking, investment real estate financing, business credit, capital market, and lease financing services. It also provides consumer banking products and services, such as deposit products, mortgage and consumer lending services, and mobile and online banking services. The Wealth Management segment provides personal and corporate fiduciary services comprising administration of decedent and trust estates; and securities brokerage and investment advisory services, mutual funds, and annuities. The Insurance segment comprises commercial and personal insurance, and reinsurance products, as well as mezzanine financing options for small- to medium-sized businesses. The company operates community banking branches in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington, D.C., and Virginia. F.N.B. Corporation was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Southern First Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans to the general public in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. The company accepts various deposit products that include checking accounts, commercial checking accounts, and savings accounts, as well as other time deposits, including daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate loans; construction real estate loans; commercial business loans for various lines of businesses, such as the manufacturing, service industry, and professional service areas; consumer real estate and home equity loans; and other consumer loans, including secured and unsecured installment loans and revolving lines of credit. In addition, the company provides other bank services, such as internet banking, cash management, safe deposit boxes, direct deposit, automatic drafts, bill payment, and mobile banking services. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina.