Sifting through countless of stocks in the Banks industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in First BanCorp. or Ameris Bancorp because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp

First BanCorp. operates as the bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. It operates through six segments: Mortgage Banking; Consumer (Retail) Banking; Commercial and Corporate Banking; Treasury and Investments; United States Operations; and Virgin Islands Operations. The Mortgage Banking segment engages in the origination, sale, and servicing of various residential mortgage loans; hedging activities; purchase of mortgage loans from branch and mortgage bankers; and origination of residential real estate loans. The Consumer (Retail) Banking segment is involved in consumer lending, commercial lending to small businesses, commercial transaction banking, and deposit-taking activities. The Commercial and Corporate Banking segment offers lending and other services, including commercial lending and commercial deposit-taking activities. The Treasury and Investments segment manages funding; and obtains funds through brokered deposits, advances from the FHLB, and repurchase agreements involving investment securities, among other funding sources. The United States Operations segment provides checking, savings, and money market accounts; retail CDs; internet banking services; residential mortgages; home equity loans and lines of credit; retail deposits; cash management services; remote data capture; automated clearing house transactions; and traditional commercial and industrial, and commercial real estate products, such as lines of credit, term loans, and construction loans. The Virgin Islands Operations segment focuses on consumer and commercial lending, and deposit-taking activities. The company also offers automobile financing and insurance agency services. First BanCorp. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides various banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through four segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, 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 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. Further, it operates full-service domestic banking offices, and mortgage and loan production offices. Ameris Bancorp was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Latest Banks and First BanCorp., Ameris Bancorp Stock News

As of September 1, 2026, First BanCorp. had a $4.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Banks median of $730.8 million. First BanCorp.’s stock is up 34.3% in 2026, down 1% in the previous five trading days and up 25.28% in the past year.

Currently, First BanCorp.’s price-earnings ratio is 11.7. First BanCorp.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $954.2 million with a 39.0% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 9.4%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.397 per share for the current fiscal year. First BanCorp. currently has a 2.9% dividend yield.

As of September 1, 2026, Ameris Bancorp had a $5.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 69th percentile of all stocks. Ameris Bancorp’s stock is up 12.5% in 2026, down 2.7% in the previous five trading days and up 14.02% in the past year.

Currently, Ameris Bancorp’s price-earnings ratio is 15.1. Ameris Bancorp’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.2 billion with a 31.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 3.6%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $6.636 per share for the current fiscal year. Ameris Bancorp currently has a 1.0% dividend yield.

How We Compare First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
First BanCorp.	FBP	B
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

First BanCorp. has a Value Score of 66, which is Value. Ameris Bancorp has a Value Score of 63, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Value Grade breakdown above, both First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp have a Value Grade of B. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, you will need to conduct further research into both of these companies’ other metrics to see if they could be good additions to your portfolio. It’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
First BanCorp.	FBP	B
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	C

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

First BanCorp. has a Growth Score of 64, which is Strong. Ameris Bancorp has a Growth Score of 56, which is Average.

The Growth Grade Winner: First BanCorp.

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, First BanCorp. has a more attractive growth grade than Ameris Bancorp. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, First BanCorp. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
First BanCorp.	FBP	B
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	D

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

First BanCorp. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 66, which is Positive. Ameris Bancorp has a Earnings Estimate Score of 34, which is Negative.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: First BanCorp.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, First BanCorp. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Ameris Bancorp. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, First BanCorp. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Growth and Value, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Quality.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, First BanCorp. or Ameris Bancorp Stock?

Overall, First BanCorp. stock has a Value Score of 66, Growth Score of 64 and Estimate Revisions Score of 66.

Ameris Bancorp stock has a Value Score of 63, Growth Score of 56 and Estimate Revisions Score of 34.

Comparing First BanCorp. and Ameris Bancorp’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.