Head to Head Comparison: First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) vs. Mid Penn Bancorp (NASDAQ:MPB)

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) and Mid Penn Bancorp (NASDAQ:MPB) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for First Financial Bancorp. and Mid Penn Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First Financial Bancorp.	0	2	5	0	2.71
Mid Penn Bancorp	0	1	4	0	2.80

First Financial Bancorp. currently has a consensus target price of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 4.49%. Mid Penn Bancorp has a consensus target price of $39.67, suggesting a potential upside of 15.51%. Given Mid Penn Bancorp’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Mid Penn Bancorp is more favorable than First Financial Bancorp..

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First Financial Bancorp.	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mid Penn Bancorp	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares First Financial Bancorp. and Mid Penn Bancorp”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First Financial Bancorp.	N/A	N/A	N/A	$2.83	11.50
Mid Penn Bancorp	$260.62 million	3.34	$72.96 million	$2.88	11.92

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

77.2% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 43.1% of Mid Penn Bancorp shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 7.2% of Mid Penn Bancorp shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Mid Penn Bancorp beats First Financial Bancorp. on 6 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About Mid Penn Bancorp

Mid Penn Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Mid Penn Bank that provides commercial banking services to individuals, partnerships, non-profit organizations, and corporations. The company offers various time and demand deposit products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, clubs, money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. It also provides a range of loan products comprising mortgage and home equity loans, secured and unsecured commercial and consumer loans, lines of credit, construction financing, farm loans, community development loans, loans to non-profit entities, and local government loans. In addition, the company offers trust, retail investment, wealth management, and insurance services; and provides online banking, telephone banking, cash management, and automated teller services, as well as safe deposit boxes. The company was founded in 1868 and is headquartered in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.