Financial Survey: BNCCORP (OTCMKTS:BNCC) vs. First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE)

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) and BNCCORP (OTCMKTS:BNCC) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares First Busey and BNCCORP’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Busey	19.16%	10.19%	1.36%
BNCCORP	15.52%	8.75%	0.89%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

56.5% of First Busey shares are held by institutional investors. 3.8% of First Busey shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 28.4% of BNCCORP shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares First Busey and BNCCORP”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Busey	$1.04 billion	2.27	$135.26 million	$2.25	12.44
BNCCORP	$57.17 million	2.12	$8.77 million	$2.59	13.22

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

Risk & Volatility

First Busey has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BNCCORP has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its share price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for First Busey and BNCCORP, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Busey	0	3	4	0	2.57
BNCCORP	0	0	0	0	0.00

First Busey presently has a consensus price target of $27.50, suggesting a potential downside of 1.75%. Given First Busey’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Busey is more favorable than BNCCORP.

Summary

First Busey beats BNCCORP on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First Busey

First Busey Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Busey Bank that engages in the provision of retail and commercial banking products and services to individual, corporate, institutional, and governmental customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and FirsTech. The Banking segment provides banking services to individual customers, such as demand and savings deposits, money transfers, safe deposit services, individual retirement accounts and other fiduciary services, automated teller machines, and technology-based networks, as well as loan products, including residential real estate, home equity lines of credit, and consumer loans. This segment also offers banking services to corporate customers, including commercial, commercial real estate, real estate construction, and agricultural loans, as well as cash management services. The Wealth Management segment offers a range of investment and asset management, investment, brokerage, investment strategy consulting, fiduciary, philanthropic advisory, tax preparation, business succession planning, and employee retirement plan services to individuals, businesses, and foundations; and professional farm management services to the agricultural industry. The FirsTech segment provides payment technology solutions comprising online, mobile, and voice-recognition bill payments; money management and credit card networks; direct debit services; lockbox remittance processing for payments made by mail; and walk-in payments, as well as tools to help clients with billing, reconciliation, bill reminders, and treasury services. The company was founded in 1868 and is headquartered in Champaign, Illinois.

About BNCCORP

BNCCORP, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for BNC National Bank that provides community banking, retail and mortgage banking, and wealth management services to businesses and consumers. The company offers commercial banking services, including business financing, commercial real estate lending, small business administration loans, business checking, cash management, corporate credit cards, and merchant services to small to middle-market businesses. It also provides retail and mortgage banking services, such as personal checking and savings products, personal loans, and card services; and residential loans through a consumer direct channel, as well as a retail channel. In addition, the company offers wealth management solutions, including 401(k) and other retirement plans, trust services, and personal wealth advisory services. It offers community banking and wealth management services through 11 locations in Arizona and North Dakota; and mortgage banking services through 7 locations in Arizona, North Dakota, Illinois, and Kansas. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Bismarck, North Dakota.