Comparing First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) & United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB)

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) and First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, dividends and profitability.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares United Community Banks and First Citizens BancShares”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Community Banks	$1.54 billion	2.77	$328.10 million	$2.72	13.06
First Citizens BancShares	$14.51 billion	1.66	$2.21 billion	$173.88	11.98

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

82.3% of United Community Banks shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.0% of First Citizens BancShares shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of United Community Banks 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 hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

United Community Banks pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. First Citizens BancShares pays an annual dividend of $8.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. United Community Banks pays out 36.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Citizens BancShares pays out 4.8% 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. First Citizens BancShares has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares United Community Banks and First Citizens BancShares’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Community Banks	22.05%	9.65%	1.24%
First Citizens BancShares	15.62%	11.48%	1.03%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for United Community Banks and First Citizens BancShares, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Community Banks	0	4	4	0	2.50
First Citizens BancShares	1	9	3	1	2.29

United Community Banks presently has a consensus price target of $38.40, indicating a potential upside of 8.10%. First Citizens BancShares has a consensus price target of $2,243.75, indicating a potential upside of 7.72%. Given United Community Banks’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe United Community Banks is more favorable than First Citizens BancShares.

Risk & Volatility

United Community Banks has a beta of 0.81, suggesting that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Citizens BancShares has a beta of 0.62, suggesting that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

United Community Banks beats First Citizens BancShares on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for United Community Bank that provides financial products and services to commercial, retail, government, education, energy, health care, and real estate sectors. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts. It also offers lending services, including real estate, consumer, and commercial loans, to individuals, small businesses, mid-sized commercial businesses, and non-profit organizations, as well as secured and unsecured, and mortgage loans. In addition, the company originate loans partially guaranteed by the SBA and USDA loan programs. Further, it provides wealth management services comprising financial planning, customized portfolio management, and investment advice; trust services to manage fiduciary assets; non-deposit investment products; and insurance products, including life insurance, long-term care insurance, and tax-deferred annuities, as well as invests in residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, the U.S. treasury, the U.S. agency, and municipal obligations. Additionally, the company offers reinsurance on a property insurance contract; insurance agency services; brokerage services; and payment processing, merchant, wire transfer, private banking, and other related financial services. It operates through a network of 171 branches in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. United Community Banks, Inc. was founded in 1950 and is headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia.

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.