Head to Head Analysis: Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) vs. First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) and First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, earnings and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida and First Citizens BancShares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	15.47%	7.07%	0.98%
First Citizens BancShares	15.21%	11.18%	1.03%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida and First Citizens BancShares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	0	4	3	0	2.43
First Citizens BancShares	0	8	4	2	2.57

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida currently has a consensus target price of $31.90, suggesting a potential downside of 2.54%. First Citizens BancShares has a consensus target price of $2,227.08, suggesting a potential upside of 9.70%. Given First Citizens BancShares’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe First Citizens BancShares is more favorable than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida.

Dividends

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. First Citizens BancShares pays an annual dividend of $8.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida pays out 47.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Citizens BancShares pays out 5.1% 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. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years and First Citizens BancShares has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

81.8% of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.0% of First Citizens BancShares shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 14.6% of First Citizens BancShares shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Citizens BancShares has a beta of 0.65, indicating that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida and First Citizens BancShares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida	$652.63 million	4.90	$144.88 million	$1.60	20.46
First Citizens BancShares	$14.51 billion	1.67	$2.21 billion	$165.72	12.25

First Citizens BancShares has higher revenue and earnings than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida. First Citizens BancShares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

First Citizens BancShares beats Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida is a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of integrated financial services. It provides banking and investment services to businesses and consumers, including personal and business deposit products, Internet and mobile banking, personal, commercial and mortgage loans, wealth management services, and treasury management solutions. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Stuart, FL.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc. operates as the holding company for First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, and professionals. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, money market, and time deposit accounts. Its loan product portfolio comprises commercial construction and mortgage; and commercial and industrial leases, as well as small business administration loans. In addition, the company offers consumer loans, such as residential and revolving mortgage, consumer auto, and other consumer loans. Further, it provides wealth management services, including annuities, brokerage services, and third-party mutual funds, as well as investment management and advisory services. The company provides its products and services through its branch network. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. was founded in 1898 and is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina.