Critical Review: Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) vs. U.S.A Bank (OTCMKTS:USBK)

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) and U.S.A Bank (OTCMKTS:USBK) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Ameris Bancorp and U.S.A Bank”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ameris Bancorp	$1.13 billion	4.62	$358.68 million	$5.68	13.35
U.S.A Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Ameris Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than U.S.A Bank.

Volatility and Risk

Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, U.S.A Bank has a beta of -24.99, suggesting that its stock price is 2,599% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Ameris Bancorp and U.S.A Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ameris Bancorp	21.46%	9.57%	1.32%
U.S.A Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Ameris Bancorp and U.S.A Bank, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ameris Bancorp	0	1	6	0	2.86
U.S.A Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

Ameris Bancorp presently has a consensus target price of $72.14, suggesting a potential downside of 4.84%. Given Ameris Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Ameris Bancorp is more favorable than U.S.A Bank.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.4% of Ameris Bancorp shares are owned by company 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.

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats U.S.A Bank on 10 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides range of banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through five segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, SBA Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, regular interest-bearing savings, money market, individual retirement, and certificates of deposit accounts. It also provides commercial real estate, residential real estate mortgage, agricultural, and commercial and industrial loans; consumer loans, including motor vehicle, home improvement, and home equity loans, as well as loans secured by savings accounts and personal credit lines. In addition, the company originates, administers, and services commercial insurance premium loans, equipment finance loans, and small business administration loans. It operates full service domestic banking offices, and mortgage and loan production offices. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

About U.S.A Bank

As of July 10, 2010, U.S.A Bank was acquired by Customers Bank (Phoenixville, Pennsylvania). U.S.A Bank operates as a community bank in New York. It offers deposit products, Internet banking, ATM cards, consumer loans, and residential and commercial loans. U.S.A Bank was founded in 2005 and is based in Port Chester, New York.