Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) versus First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Head to Head Comparison

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

81.2% of Hancock Whitney shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.2% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Hancock Whitney shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are owned 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 and Earnings

This table compares Hancock Whitney and First Financial Bancorp.”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hancock Whitney	$2.02 billion	2.90	$486.07 million	$5.10	14.32
First Financial Bancorp.	$1.26 billion	2.62	$255.60 million	$2.83	11.12

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

Volatility and Risk

Hancock Whitney has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Financial Bancorp. has a beta of 0.93, suggesting that its stock price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Hancock Whitney and First Financial Bancorp.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hancock Whitney	21.81%	11.36%	1.41%
First Financial Bancorp.	20.77%	11.13%	1.49%

Dividends

Hancock Whitney pays an annual dividend of $2.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. First Financial Bancorp. pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Hancock Whitney pays out 39.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Financial Bancorp. pays out 36.7% 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. Hancock Whitney has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and First Financial Bancorp. has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years. First Financial Bancorp. is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Hancock Whitney and First Financial Bancorp., as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hancock Whitney	0	3	7	1	2.82
First Financial Bancorp.	0	2	5	0	2.71

Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus price target of $84.56, suggesting a potential upside of 15.78%. First Financial Bancorp. has a consensus price target of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 8.01%. Given Hancock Whitney’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Hancock Whitney is more favorable than First Financial Bancorp..

Summary

Hancock Whitney beats First Financial Bancorp. on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation operates as the financial holding company for Hancock Whitney Bank that provides traditional and online banking services to commercial, small business, and retail customers. It offers various transaction and savings deposit products consisting of brokered deposits, time deposits, and money market accounts; treasury management services, secured and unsecured loan products including revolving credit facilities, and letters of credit and similar financial guarantees; and trust and investment management services to retirement plans, corporations, and individuals, and investment advisory and brokerage products. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans including real and non-real estate loans; construction and land development loans; and residential mortgages, as well as consumer loans. In addition, it offers commercial finance products to middle market and corporate clients, including leases and related structures; facilitates investments in new market tax credit activities and holding certain foreclosed assets; provides customers access to fixed annuity and life insurance products; and underwriting transactions products, as well as debt and mortgage-related securities. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi.

About First Financial Bancorp.

First Financial Bancorp. operates as the bank holding company for First Financial Bank that provides commercial banking and related services to individuals and businesses in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. The company offers checking, savings, and money-market accounts; and accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing accounts, time deposits, and cash management services for commercial customers. It also provides real estate loans secured by residential property, such as one to four family residential housing units or commercial property comprising owner-occupied and/or investor income producing real estate consisting of apartments, shopping centers, and office buildings; commercial and industrial loans for various purposes, including inventory, receivables, and equipment, as well as equipment and leasehold improvement financing for franchisees; consumer loans comprising new and used vehicle loans, second mortgages on residential real estate, and unsecured loans; and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers commercial financing to the insurance industry, registered investment advisors, certified public accountants, indirect auto finance companies, and restaurant franchisees. Further, it provides a range of trust and wealth management services; lease and equipment financing services; and currency payments, foreign exchange hedging, and other advisory products. First Financial Bancorp. was founded in 1863 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.