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BANF vs BUSE
Which Stock Would AI Choose? BancFirst Corporation (BANF) vs. First Busey Corporation (BUSE) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- BancFirst Corporation (BANF) reported Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) of $1.85, surpassing estimates and driving positive recent momentum.
- First Busey Corporation (BUSE) has outperformed with a year-to-date return of approximately 14%, compared to BANF's 9%.
- Both regional banks benefit from improving net interest margins (NIM, the difference between interest income and expense) amid stabilizing rates, but BUSE shows stronger one-year gains at 39% versus BANF's 7%.
- BANF maintains a conservative balance sheet with low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, enhancing stability.
- Recent analyst sentiment leans positive for both, with BUSE receiving upgrades reflecting earnings optimism.
- Market positioning favors momentum plays like BUSE in the current environment, while BANF appeals for earnings consistency.
Introduction
BancFirst Corporation (BANF) and First Busey Corporation (BUSE) are regional bank holding companies navigating a dynamic financial sector. This comparison analyzes their business models, recent performance, and market positioning, aiding investors seeking exposure to community banking amid interest rate shifts and economic recovery. Traders focused on relative strength in financial stocks will find insights into momentum, stability, and growth potential, highlighting trade-offs in a competitive landscape.
BANF Overview and Recent Performance
BancFirst Corporation (BANF), headquartered in Oklahoma City, operates as a full-service bank holding company primarily serving Oklahoma through branches focused on commercial, consumer, and agricultural lending. In recent market activity, BANF stock has traded around $116, reflecting year-to-date gains of about 9%. Key sentiment drivers include robust Q1 2026 results, with net income of $63 million and EPS of $1.85, exceeding analyst expectations and up from prior quarters. This performance, bolstered by controlled non-performing loans and strong deposit growth, has supported upward price momentum in recent weeks, amid broader regional bank recovery.
BUSE Overview and Recent Performance
First Busey Corporation (BUSE), based in Champaign, Illinois, provides retail and commercial banking services across Illinois, Missouri, Florida, and Indiana. Shares have hovered near $27 recently, with year-to-date returns of roughly 14% and one-year gains exceeding 38%. Recent performance reflects positive analyst upgrades and solid Q4 2025 earnings, where EPS hit $0.68, beating forecasts. Sentiment has improved on expanding loan portfolios and favorable net interest margin trends in recent market conditions, contributing to outperformance relative to peers.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
Both BANF and BUSE operate in the regional banking sector, emphasizing relationship-driven lending and deposit gathering, but differ in geographic focus—Oklahoma for BANF versus Midwest and Florida for BUSE. Growth drivers include loan expansion for BUSE, which boasts superior recent momentum, versus BANF's earnings reliability. Risk factors involve interest rate sensitivity and credit quality (non-performing loans), with BANF showing lower leverage. Sector exposure ties both to economic cycles, but BUSE exhibits stronger market sentiment via upgrades, trading at comparable P/E ratios around 15-18x.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron's AI models currently lean toward BUSE with higher probability due to superior relative performance, including 14% YTD gains and robust one-year momentum, alongside positive analyst revisions. While BANF offers stability via recent earnings beats and conservative positioning, BUSE's trend consistency positions it better for near-term outperformance in the regional bank space.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is BANF is a Hold and BUSE is a Hold.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
BANF’s FA Score shows that 0 FA rating(s) are green whileBUSE’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s).
- BANF’s FA Score: 0 green, 5 red.
- BUSE’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
BANF’s TA Score shows that 6 TA indicator(s) are bullish while BUSE’s TA Score has 4 bullish TA indicator(s).
- BANF’s TA Score: 6 bullish, 3 bearish.
- BUSE’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 3 bearish.
Price Growth
BANF (@Regional Banks) experienced а +1.10% price change this week, while BUSE (@Regional Banks) price change was +0.46% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Regional Banks industry was +0.08%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +5.42%, and the average quarterly price growth was +10.09%.
Reported Earning Dates
BANF is expected to report earnings on Jul 16, 2026.
BUSE is expected to report earnings on Jul 28, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Regional Banks (+0.08% weekly)Regional banks have a smaller reach than major banks, and cater mostly to one region of a country, such as a state or within a group of states. They offer services often similar – albeit with some limitations/smaller scale – compared to major banks. Taking deposits, making loans, mortgages, leases, credit cards , fund management, insurance and investment banking. SunTrust Banks, State Street Corp., M&T Bank Corp. are some examples of U.S. regional banks.
| BANF | BUSE | BANF / BUSE | |
| Capitalization | 3.83B | 2.4B | 160% |
| EBITDA | N/A | N/A | - |
| Gain YTD | 8.084 | 21.534 | 38% |
| P/E Ratio | 15.63 | 11.66 | 134% |
| Revenue | 705M | 791M | 89% |
| Total Cash | 205M | 181M | 113% |
| Total Debt | 101M | 506M | 20% |
BANF | BUSE | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 40 | 43 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 80 Overvalued | 22 Undervalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 42 | 56 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 35 | 37 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 51 | 44 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 68 | 91 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | n/a | 75 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
BUSE's Valuation (22) in the Regional Banks industry is somewhat better than the same rating for BANF (80). This means that BUSE’s stock grew somewhat faster than BANF’s over the last 12 months.
BANF's Profit vs Risk Rating (42) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BUSE (56). This means that BANF’s stock grew similarly to BUSE’s over the last 12 months.
BANF's SMR Rating (35) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BUSE (37). This means that BANF’s stock grew similarly to BUSE’s over the last 12 months.
BUSE's Price Growth Rating (44) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BANF (51). This means that BUSE’s stock grew similarly to BANF’s over the last 12 months.
BANF's P/E Growth Rating (68) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BUSE (91). This means that BANF’s stock grew similarly to BUSE’s over the last 12 months.
| BANF | BUSE | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | N/A | 2 days ago 68% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 59% | 2 days ago 59% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 73% | 2 days ago 59% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 80% | 2 days ago 57% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 64% | 2 days ago 59% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 63% | 2 days ago 55% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 6 days ago 64% | 6 days ago 55% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 17 days ago 65% | N/A |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 50% | 2 days ago 61% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 54% | 2 days ago 52% |
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BANF and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, BANF has been closely correlated with BUSE. These tickers have moved in lockstep 85% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if BANF jumps, then BUSE could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To BANF | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BANF | 100% | +0.59% | ||
| BUSE - BANF | 85% Closely correlated | +0.28% | ||
| TRMK - BANF | 85% Closely correlated | +0.22% | ||
| STBA - BANF | 84% Closely correlated | +0.13% | ||
| SFNC - BANF | 83% Closely correlated | +0.36% | ||
| EFSC - BANF | 83% Closely correlated | -0.08% | ||
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BUSE and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, BUSE has been closely correlated with PRK. These tickers have moved in lockstep 88% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if BUSE jumps, then PRK could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To BUSE | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUSE | 100% | +0.28% | ||
| PRK - BUSE | 88% Closely correlated | +0.68% | ||
| EFSC - BUSE | 86% Closely correlated | -0.08% | ||
| FULT - BUSE | 86% Closely correlated | +0.87% | ||
| SRCE - BUSE | 85% Closely correlated | +0.36% | ||
| PEBO - BUSE | 85% Closely correlated | +0.61% | ||
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