Reviewing Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) and Glen Burnie Bancorp (NASDAQ:GLBZ)

Glen Burnie Bancorp (NASDAQ:GLBZ) and Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

9.8% of Glen Burnie Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.6% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 14.1% of Glen Burnie Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of Ameris Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Glen Burnie Bancorp and Ameris Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Glen Burnie Bancorp	3.41%	3.04%	0.14%
Ameris Bancorp	19.28%	8.97%	1.20%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Glen Burnie Bancorp and Ameris Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Glen Burnie Bancorp	$11.95 million	1.39	$1.43 million	$0.35	16.46
Ameris Bancorp	$1.06 billion	3.99	$269.11 million	$4.11	14.95

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Glen Burnie Bancorp and Ameris Bancorp, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Glen Burnie Bancorp	0	0	0	0	N/A
Ameris Bancorp	0	1	4	0	2.80

Ameris Bancorp has a consensus target price of $67.00, indicating a potential upside of 9.01%. Given Ameris Bancorp’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Ameris Bancorp is more favorable than Glen Burnie Bancorp.

Risk & Volatility

Glen Burnie Bancorp has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameris Bancorp has a beta of 1.02, suggesting that its stock price is 2% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Glen Burnie Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.9%. Ameris Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Glen Burnie Bancorp pays out 114.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Ameris Bancorp pays out 14.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Ameris Bancorp beats Glen Burnie Bancorp on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Glen Burnie Bancorp

Glen Burnie Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for The Bank of Glen Burnie that provides commercial and retail banking services to individuals, associations, partnerships, and corporations. The company offers savings accounts, money market deposit accounts, demand deposit accounts, NOW checking accounts, IRA and SEP accounts, and certificates of deposit. It also provides residential and commercial real estate, construction, land acquisition and development, and secured and unsecured commercial loans, as well as consumer instalment lending, such as indirect automobile lending services; and residential first and second mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, and commercial mortgage loans. In addition, the company offers safe deposit boxes, money orders, night depositories, automated clearinghouse transactions, wire transfers, and automated teller machine (ATM) services, as well as electronic banking services, such as telephone and online banking, bill pay, card management and control, mobile app, merchant source capture, mobile deposit capture, Zelle, etc. Further, it provides treasury services, including wire transfer and ACH services, and debit cards. Additionally, the company engages in the acquisition and disposition of other real estate properties. It serves customers in northern Anne Arundel county and surrounding areas from its main office and branch in Glen Burnie, Maryland; and branch offices in Odenton, Riviera Beach, Crownsville, Severn, Linthicum, and Severna Park, Maryland. The company also operates a remote ATM located in Pasadena, Maryland. The company was founded in 1949 and is based in Glen Burnie, Maryland.

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.